Don't Fear Me
by DryWhiteToast
Summary: I'm a ghost, but that doesn't mean I'm a menace. I'm a ghost who's falling for a Ghostbuster. Crazy...I know.
1. Chapter 1

The day's sunlight quickly vanishes behind a wall of storm clouds, sending a gloomy chilliness over the city. Fat rain drops begin to pour down on an old neighborhood.

People hurried along the wet sidewalks, hiding themselves underneath umbrellas as thunder rumbled in the sky. Wheels of cars sloshed through, developing rain puddles in the road.

A chubby woman opens a dryer, pulling out warm clean clothes, and piles them onto a counter top.

She gazes through the windows at the damp weather outside, feeling glad she was safe and dry inside the Laundromat. Her thick hands begin to fold the clothes, stacking them neatly into piles.

On the ceiling, the bright florescent lights suddenly start to flicker. She looks up from her folding and the flickering instantly stops. She shrugs, thinking not much of it. She figures it must be an electricity problem due to the storm.

She continues with her folding, but soon a feeling of uneasiness washes over her. Hairs on the back of her neck rise up.

Once again, she glances up, turning herself completely around to observe the room. She was the only one there. The Laundromat was quiet except for two humming dryers busily spinning clothes. Her eyebrows furrow with confusion. She could of sworn she felt someone else's presence.

Exhaling, she shakes her head, laughing at herself for feeling so spooked over nothing. Turning back to the counter, she begins to fold her clothes with a greater speed.

The florescent lights start to flicker again. The woman tries to ignore it. Her shaky hands fold as quickly as they can. The sounds of thunder crackle and rumble on outside.

The florescent lights flicker faster and faster, soon creating an erratic strobe effect. The woman can no longer take anymore. With fear consuming her, she decides to leave.

Moving away from the counter to grab her laundry basket, she gasps loudly in horror over the unbelievable sight displaying itself in front of her. A stack of her folded clothes hovering, just floating there, bobbing up and down in midair.

The woman's eyes widen and her mouth drops, releasing a blood-curdling scream. "AAAAHHHHHEEEE!"

Her hands quickly reach into her shirt collar, whipping out a necklace with a crucifix dangling at the end. She then begins to franticly mumble a prayer in Spanish.

Her wide eyes watch as her folded clothes drift through the air and land gently onto the counter next to her.

"AAAAAHHHHEEE!" The woman screams again. And with that, she bolts for the door, knocking a box of laundry detergent over, spilling powdered soap across the floor.

Screaming words in Spanish, she runs psychotically down the street in the rain.

The stack of folded clothes sat peacefully on the countertop. The florescent lights glowed normally. The two dryers continue to hum and spin clothes. The room was quiet and normal once again.

High up in the corner of the ceiling was a small orb of pink mist, which rested along the ceiling beams.

"I was only trying to help that lady," the mist told itself. "Now cops are going to show up. They always do. Why do the living get so scared?"

The mist evaporates into the ceiling, coming out through the other side to an attic space of some sort.

Wires were strung along the wooden beams and rats scurried back and forth among gaping holes in the walls.

The mist lowers itself down on the wooden planks, where it morphs into a translucent figure of a young lady. An aura of pink still hazed around her.

She brings her knees up to her chest and hugs them in place where she sits in thought.

Unlike other spirits, she knew exactly what she was. A ghost...a very, very lonely ghost.

She lays her head down against the top of her knees. A lonely ghost that somehow got to keep her consciousness, her ability to think and feel. She has yet to find another ghost like herself.

The ghosts she has encountered have all seemed aloof, dumb or wild. Some ghosts even seem be in some sort of trance-like state, only re-enacting certain actions over and over again, like their deaths or something they loved to do when they were alive.

Ghosts are hard to communicate with. Even as a ghost, it's hard to connect with them. The living, she hoped, would be easier to connect to, but every attempt has failed miserably. The living are too terrified to acknowledge a ghost, even a friendly ghost like herself.

Tears begin to form in her eyes. If only she could talk to someone. Anyone.

"It t'was in here! Here! I saw my clothes dance in da air!"

The pink ghost lifts up her head over the voices coming through the walls. "Oh great. What trouble did I cause now?" the ghost says to herself. She morphs into a mass of mist and looks through the floor to the Laundromat below.

"I was folding ma clothes here and that's when I see it!"

"What exactly did you see, ma am?"

"Nothing! That is what scary. My clothes...they move on their own!"

"Can you describe what your clothes did, ma am?"

"They folded on own and then move through air, then land on da counter next to me!" she explains emotionally.

"Relax ma am. We're here to help. We'll get down to the bottom of this."

"Oh...oh okay den." The women stands out of the way of the four men in weird jumpsuits beginning to examine the Laundromat.

The pink mist watches from above. Who were these strange men? These guys didn't look like cops.

"So a haunted Laundromat, huh?." the dark-skinned man snickers.

"Maybe some kind of poltergeist?" the man wearing glasses asks out loud.

"Could be, but I think this could also be some kind of an intelligent haunting," the chubby man adds.

"Well, I don't know about it being intelligent, Ray. I mean, this thing likes to spend its time in Laundromats," the sarcastic sounding man jokes.

"What I mean by intelligent is the spirit is obviously trying to communicate," Ray explains.

"By doing that woman's laundry." the man in the glasses adds as he pulls out an odd blinking object.

The pink mist watches the men with curiosity.

"Sounds like a ghost I wanna have haunting me," the dark-skinned man jokes.

The odd object in the glasses wearing man's hand begins to blink like crazy.

"Something's definitely here," he warns everybody.

The pink mist flies along the ceiling to watch closer.

"Are they looking for me?" she ponders. A sudden feeling of excitement and hope fills her.

The man holds out the blinking object, scanning the room with it. The lights blink faster and faster as he aims the object upward in her direction.

"It's somewhere up there."

The men all look upward.

"Hello? Ghost? I have socks here that need folding," the sarcastic man calls out.

"This is my chance," the ghost tells herself. "Actual living people want to contact me!"

Bravely she lowers herself down to allow them to view her. The men's eyes widen in wonder and shock as they spot the pink orb coming slowly toward them. She allows herself to loosen, letting her orb fan out into a bright pink mist.

The men suddenly get spooked.

"Get it!" one of them yells.

They all reach for their gun-looking hoses strapped to their backs and begin to fire fast streams of hot light at her.

She screams as she shrinks back up into an orb, flying around the room to get away. The men also move, chasing her with their stream blasts, shooting in all directions, damaging the room.

"What's happening? Why are they attacking me?!" She flies over and around the men's blasts. They holler and shout as they scramble to catch her. The woman watches from the doorway in stunned shock.

"I'm outta here!" the ghost squeals, trying to fly up to her ceiling hideaway when suddenly she can no longer move.

"I got it!"

"Good job, Ray! Hold it steady!"

One of the men slides a metal box connected to a long cord across the floor, aiming it underneath her.

She feels the powerful stream of energy hold around her, dragging her downward like quicksand.

"Wha...what's happening?!" Her little pink orb self desperately tries to get away but cannot.

She can see the metal box open with a clank and the next thing she knows, she's inside the box.

Trapped and scared, she pushes against the top of the box, but nothing budges. From inside she can hear the men cheer and congratulate themselves. The woman also cries with appreciation.

The box tilts as someone lifts it up off the ground by its cord. The pink orb tumbles inside the walls of the box.

"Well, another day's work completed."

"Yeah, let's get this thing put away and get some food."

"Italian?"

"Nah."

"Mexican?

"Too spicy"

"Chinese?"

"Sounds good to me."

The orb franticly bounces around inside. What do they mean 'put me away?!'

The box sways around, swinging back and forth in the sarcastic man's hand. He holds the box up by the wire like a dangling fish on a hook.

"Whoa! We got a lively one here," he chuckles.

Ray opens the car doors, helping Peter load in the jumpy ghost box. Ray stares at the box from behind Peter's shoulder. For some strange reason, he feels kind of sorry for it.

"Alright, let's get going. I'm starving!" Peter slaps Ray's shoulder.

The orb feels the rumble of the car's engine as they speed down the streets.

She scoots herself into a corner of the box. She's never been trapped before. How was this box keeping her contained? Ghosts can naturally move through anything. This box was strange, unnatural. And why were these men being mean, shooting at her and keeping her hostage? What are they going to do? Feeling extremely frightened and hopeless, she begins to cry.

The men all talk casually amongst themselves as Ray drives through the New York traffic.

"Shhhhh! You hear that?"

Ray hushes the men. They all stop talking and try to listen for something.

"What?"

"You don't hear that?"

"Hear what, Ray?"

"I don't know. It, uh, sounds like crying."

The men give another listen but hear nothing.

"I think you need some sleep, Ray."

"It's my stomach crying for food," Peter jokes, making the other men chuckle.

"You don't hear it?"

"No, Ray."

"Nope."

"No, I do not."

The men go back to their conversation as Ray focuses back on his driving, though he could still hear a very faint sound of a sobbing female.


	2. Chapter 2

"Alright, here ya go guys. Tomorrow's work orders." A petit woman with a nasally voice hands over papers to the guys. She can smell the rainy-weather air come in after them as they tromped inside the old firehouse doors.

"Thanks Janine." The man with the glasses takes the paper from her and begins glancing over the lists written on the page.

"Oh great, looks like we have another infestation."

The men all groan.

"Again? That's the third time this month," Peter whines as he holds the trap box still containing the pink orb they caught earlier.

"Why can't every day be like today, just catching one ghost at a time?"

The pink orb stirs around inside the box. "They catch ghosts? What are these guys? Some kind of ghost hunters?"

"Enough talk about work, let's eat!" The dark-skinned man eagerly dashes up some stairs to the kitchen with bags of delicious smelling Chinese food in his arms.

"Hey Winston! Save me some egg rolls this time will ya!" Peter yells up just as the man with glasses passes him up the stairs to the food.

"You to Egon!" Peter shouts again.

Peter stands there with a pout holding the trap box by its cord.

"Hey uh, Venkman, I'll, uh, unload the box for you. Go eat." Ray says as he takes the box's cord from Peter's grip.

"Alright, thanks." Peter says before dashing up the stairs "And don't worry. I'll save you an egg roll!"

Ray sighs as he looks at the box dangling from the cord in his hand. There was something funny about this catch. Ever since he caught this ghost, he has felt an odd connection to it, a feeling of sympathy for it. He shakes away the thought and begins walking toward the room where the containment unit was held.

"That's funny..." Janine's voice makes Ray look up. "That trap has hardly any smoke coming off of it."

Ray looks at the box. Janine was right. Usually these boxes are smoking like crazy after a catch. This one had practically no smoke coming off of it at all.

"Yeah, huh." Ray shrugs and then continues toward the unit.

From inside the box, the pink orb could hear the click of a handle being opened, then a hum sound of a machine. The sounds frighten her. Panicking, she blurts out, "Help! Please stop! Don't hurt me!"

Ray, holding the box, ceases his movements and looks around.

"Did you say something Janine?" he hollers out.

"No!" he hears her distant voice reply.

He must be tired, he tells himself, and continues to lift the box up to slide it into the containment unit.

The orb rattles around inside.

"Please stop! Don't put me away!"

Ray stops again and pulls the box away from the unit. He's hearing voices.

He looks around once again. No one else was there except him.

"Um, hello?" he asks out loud in confusion.

The orb hears his response. She's speechless for a moment. "Did he really hear me?" she wonders.

Ray listens for that voice to respond but hears nothing. He sighs. "After some food it's sleep for me," he orders himself, lifting the box up once again to the unit.

"Wait! Hello? Can you really hear me?!" Her fear melts into hope.

It's the voice. He sits the box down on the nearby table as though it was a hot potato and stands back from it.

"I...I hear you..." he confirms.

"I hear you too." the orbs replies with excitement.

"Are you...are you in the box?"

"Yes!"

Ray cautiously steps closer to the table and studies the box with his eyes.

"This is unbelievable! Clear vocal communication with uh..uh..."

"Ghost," she finishes his sentence.

Ray runs his fingers through his hair, keeping his wide eyes on the box.

"You're not going to put me away anymore are you?" she asks.

Ray shakes his head "No...no."

The orb sighs in relief. She then hears silence.

"Are you still there?"

Stunned by what was happening, Ray shakily responds. "Um.." he gulps. "Uh, yeah."

"Please don't be afraid of me like the others, I won't hurt you."

"I'm...I'm not afraid. Just shocked I guess."

"My name is Renee. What's yours?"

He moves his face down close to the box. "Ray. Uh, it's nice to meet you Renee."

He can hear her small feminine voice giggle with joy. "It's so, so nice to meet you Ray!"

Inside the box, her pink orb glowed bright with happiness.

"Hey, where's Ray?" Egon asks the other guys sitting at the table as they busily feasted on chow mein.

"I don't know, but his egg roll's not going to last much longer." Peter eyes the lonesome eggroll sitting on a plate.

Down stairs in the containment unit room, Ray excitedly asks Renee a billion questions.

"What's it feel like to float through walls?! How long have you been a ghost?!"

She could hear him loud and clear as he spoke inches away from the box. She giggles over the joyful tone of his voice, like a curious little boy.

"Not long. 1983 I think it was when I...ya know."

Before he could reply, Janine walks in.

"Alright Ray, I'm heading out. I'll see ya in the morning." She then turns to leave.

"Wait! wait! Come here."

Janine looks irritable and sighs "What is it Ray?"

"Something unbelievable has just happened!"

She tilts her head to the side and rolls her eyes up at him. "I'm finally getting a raise?"

Ray walks her over to the table where the trap box sat.

"Say hello to the box."

Janine just stares at Ray like he's crazy, but decides to play along.

"Hello box," her nasally voice greets sarcastically.

The orb shyly greets back. "Oh...um, hello."

Ray smiles widely and looks from the box to Janine's annoyed face.

"See!" Ray holds his hands out at the box.

"See what?"

"You didn't hear her?" His smile begins to fade.

"I don't hear anything."

Ray steps closer to the table. "Renee, say hi again, but say it as loud as you can."

The orb shouts with all her strength "Hello Janine!"

There is no reaction from Janine. She crosses her arms and continues to stare at Ray.

"You...you didn't hear her?"

"No, I hear nothing. Can I go now?"

Ray runs his fingers through his hair with confusion on his face.

"Dr. Stantz, you need some rest. I'll see you in the morning." And with that, Janine leaves.

"Why? Why couldn't Janine hear you?"

"I don't know. I don't even understand how you can hear me." the orb responds. She can hear Ray pace around the room.

He starts to wonder if he really is the only one that can communicate with this ghost. But why?

"You can hear me, but can you see me, too?" Ray asks.

" Right now I can't see anything, I'm in a box."

"But you do have sight, right?"

"Yes."

Ray continues to pace around in thought. He shakes his head with a grin. "This is all so..so..."

"Wonderful," Renee finishes his sentence.

He walks back over to the box as Renee continues. "I've been so lost for so long. Lonely and confused. You really don't understand how great it is to find you Ray."

He feels himself blush.

"Ray?"

"Yeah?"

"Can you let me out of this box?"

Ray thinks about it for a moment. "I don't know if that's wise to do just yet. I mean, how do I know this whole thing's not just some trick of yours? How do I know you won't just fly away?"

"Oh, I'd never leave you! You're a dream come true! You're the only other being I can talk to. This isn't a trick. Please believe me."

Ray sighs.

"For now, I think I want to keep you in there, just until I can figure some things out, do some research, run some tests. I, uh, hope you understand."

"Tests?" she asks nervously.

"Don't worry. It won't be anything alarming. I won't hurt you. I just want to learn more about what you are and why I can talk to you."

"Are you some kind of scientist or doctor? I heard Janine call you Dr. Stantz."

"I am a scientist, a Parapsychologist with multiple degrees. I have doctorates in physics, mechanical engineering, microbiology, chemistry, occult sciences, and..."

"Wow! Really? You're well educated." Her voice then grows small. "I was just a cashier." She pauses as she compares herself to him. She visions her alive self working at that crummy corner grocery store, standing at the cash register, wearing that red apron and then tries to vision Ray in some fancy college library studying away. Never has she met such a smart man before. Suddenly she feels unworthy to even talk to him, but she continues anyway.

"Um, did you build this box I'm in?"

"Yeah. I designed it with materials that I discovered could contain gasses and other light molecules and..."

"As much as I hate being in this box, I must say I'm quite impressed by it. I mean, I've never been trapped before. This thing really works."

Ray takes her comment as a complement. "Thanks," he bashfully replies. He can hear her giggle softly.

"So will you participate in some tests with me, Renee, and figure out what's going on?"

Even though they just met, she feels she can trust him. She also wants to know what she is and senses Ray's just the right guy who could figure it out. "Okay Ray. I'll do whatever you need me to do. But what about those other ghost hunters? Will they hurt me?"

"No, not if you stay in that box. I think I'm gonna keep you a secret for a while, just until I find some answers. Then I'll introduce you to everyone. Right now, people think I'm crazy and sleep deprived." He then yawns.

The pink orb releases another small giggle. "Alright, go eat and get some rest. You do sound tired."

"Yeah." He runs his fingers once again through his hair, making it stick up. "I'll, uh, be back soon."

She sighs sadly. "I'll be here I guess."

Ray starts to stride out of the room but stops. He turns on a transistor radio, letting some classic R&B music play.

"Thought you'd like a little music. Is this okay?"

"It's perfect. Thank you."

"Bye," he says before he leaves. She can hear his footsteps slowly fade away.

The pink orb leans against the inside wall of the trap box. "Bye Ray."

Ray meets up with the other guys at the table. They watch him slurp his chow mein noodles slowly as he drifts in and out of space.

"You alright, Ray?" Winston asks.

Ray swallows his food and notices all the men looking at him with concern.

"Yeah, I'm okay." They hear the exhaustion in his voice.

Ray holds back the urge to jump up and show them all Renee. But now just wasn't the right time.

After finishing his food, he moves up from the table and heads to the bedroom. He collapses on his bed and moans with pleasure of the softness of it. His body ached all over from the long work day he had. As he stares up at the ceiling, his mind starts to think. "Maybe I am just sleep deprived. Maybe Renee isn't really real. What if I wake up the next morning and she's not there and she was all just a dream?"

The comfortable bed soon consumes him, sending him into a deep sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

The sounds of Aretha Franklin's voice drift through the first floor of the fire house. Peter steps down the stairs with a toothbrush hanging from his mouth. He follows Aretha's voice to the containment unit room.

"Why is the radio on? Was this on all night?"

Peter grabs the radio, turns it off and then looks around the place. The pink orb inside the trap box hears a man's voice

"Ray?" she asks. "Is that you?"

She hears sluggish footsteps approach the table.

"Did he not put the ghost away either?" Peter sighs irritably.

It definitely wasn't Ray. The orb starts to panic. From inside, Renee feels the box being picked up. Franticly she begins to call out for Ray.

A morning sunbeam hits Ray on the face, and he rolls over onto his side. Slowly his eyes start to groggily open. They open bit by bit as he hears his name being called in the far distance.

"Uh, Ray!" the voice calls.

He blinks.

"Ray!" the voice shrieks louder.

He blinks again.

"RAY, HELP!"

Suddenly his eyes snap open as he realizes it's Renee yelling desperately for his help. He flops out of bed with a thud. Still wearing his jumpsuit from the night before, he scrambles down the stairs shouting, "Wait! Stop! Don't!"

Peter holds the trap box up to the unit, about to insert it when Ray's body shoves him away. With a toothbrush still in his mouth, Peter scowls at Ray

"Ray! Whada matta with you?" Toothpaste spits out from Peter's mouth as Ray snatches the box from Peter's clutches.

"Don't put this one in! I'm, uh..uh...doing research." Ray scrambles to think of reasons for keeping this ghost.

Peter pulls the toothbrush out from his mouth and points it directly at Ray.

"It's too early to deal with you, Ray. It's just too early."

Peter sticks the toothbrush back into his mouth and walks away. Ray waits until he no longer hears his footsteps or the brushing of his teeth.

"Okay, Peter's gone now. Are you okay? I...I'm so sorry. I was going to come back last night but I was so tired I just..."

"Ray, that was too close. Please let me out. I wanna get out of this box. I don't want to be put in that unit thing. Please Ray!"

He hears the fear in her voice and begins to feel bad. The scientist in him wants to ignore her cries and focus on the research he could get, but the good guy that he is wants to help release her.

As much as he would like to keep her inside, he decides it wouldn't be right. Renee didn't deserve to be kept in a box like a pet or a science experiment. Ray begins to think back to when he captured her. She hadn't done anything wrong then either. The only thing she is guilty of is folding that woman's laundry and being a ghost.

"Alright Renee," he says sadly. "I'm opening it now."

She can feel him set the box onto the floor.

"It was nice knowing you," Ray says, as he is sure once he opens the box she will leave and never come back.

With a click, the box snaps open, releasing a glow of pink light. The light then quickly vanishes. The room goes quiet.

Ray silently looks around and his shoulders lower with sadness. He bends down, picking up the box and setting it back upon the table. He sighs sadly over the open empty trap box.

"BOO!"

He jumps at the sudden female voice in his ear.

"You...you're still here?!" He looks upward and around, trying to get a sense of where she was.

"Of course I'm still here! I told you I'm not leaving you."

She watches him sigh with relief as a grin appears on his face.

Suddenly she feels something, something she hadn't felt in a long time. She floats closer to him, gazing at him. The man that saved her life...well, her afterlife.

Sleepy with messy brown air, his jumpsuit half zipped open with a black t-shirt exposed underneath. She watches his puppy dog eyes shift around as if in hopes of seeing her. His round cheeks and those...lips, the prettiest pair of lips she has ever seen on a man! Pouty and kissable. She feels her ghostly insides flutter. She hadn't seen him this up close before and she admits he's adorably handsome.

"Are you there?" he asks out loud, raising an eyebrow.

She floats back from him, snapping out of her daze.

"Oh..uh, yeah, I'm here."

"Anything wrong?" he asks.

"Oh! No..no. Just, um, thanks for saving me from Peter."

Ray chuckles.

Her ghostly insides start to flutter once again. "What's going on with me?" she wonders.

She watches him stand there shyly, not knowing what to do.

"Ray?"

"Yeah?"

"I want to give you a hug."

He shoots his eyebrows upward. "Can you do that?"

"I don't know, but I'm going to try."

"Um, alright. Let's give it a try."

"Okay, here I go. Try to stand as still as you can for me," she cheerfully directs him.

He stands straight, waiting for her to do something. She smiles over how trusting and fearless he was being. It was refreshing to finally find someone like him, someone who didn't run away in fear from her.

He can't see her translucent figure float before him, though he begins to gulp with nervousness.

"Don't be nervous," she giggles.

"Sorry. It's just, I've never had a ghost want to give me a hug before. Usually they want to rip my head off or chase me down the street."

He hears her giggle again.

She begins to focus on the name tag written on his jumpsuit. "Stantz."

Concentrating, she lays her ghostly fingers upon it. Ray's eyebrows raise up instantly as he begins to feel the pressure of a touch on his chest.

"Heyyy. I think I can feel it," Ray excitably reacts.

She floats closer to him, her whole hand now placed over his name tag.

"I'm...I'm doing it. I can't believe it!" She giggles with delight.

Ray feels a full hand lay upon his chest and It begins to slide upward toward his shoulder. He holds out his arm as though expecting to hold someone.

"Oh Ray!" she squeals happily as she tries to wrap both her arms around his neck. But instead of landing against his chest for a big hug, she loses touch and floats right through him.

"Aaah!" she gasps as she falls through, sending a freezing cold chill throughout Ray's body.

"Whoa!" His eyebrows stay risen and his mouth drops over the cool tingling sensations. He turns around expecting to see a fallen girl on the ground, but of course there was nothing visible to see.

"Renee! What happened? Are you okay?!" He scans the floor.

"I'm alright," he hears an exhausted voice. "I just lost concentration. I can only do it for a moment."

"That was incredible!" Ray paces around, wowed by what happened.

Renee straightens herself out and shirks back up into a comfortable orb. She hovers her tired self over the table.

As she rests, she listens to Ray ramble on and on about how incredible this whole situation was. He begins to spit out scientific jargon that she could never possibly understand. Again she was amazed at how smart he was. Those fluttery feelings suddenly come back with full force.

Ray stops his rambling when he spots a pink glow by the table.

"Are you right there?!" He quickly points toward her.

Feeling like he caught her admiring him, she panics and Ray watches the pink glow vanish.

"Was that you? The pink..."

"Yes, I'm just resting over here."

"Resting?"

"Yeah, doing that concentrating trick really wears me out for some reason."

"Oh." His face grows concerned.

"Don't worry Ray. I'll be fine."

"You're pink. Your ectoplasm's pink."

"Huh?"

"Do you know what that means?"

"Um, no. Does it mean something?"

Ray excitably walks toward the table.

"The color of the spirit's ectoplasm represents the spirit's...uh, traits, personality," he vibrantly explains.

"Really? I just thought it meant I'm a girl ghost."

Ray chuckles. "Follow me. I want to show you something."

Renee follows Ray toward the front of the building. She spots a woman in large glasses sitting at a desk.

"Is that Janine?"

"Yeah" Ray whispers, not wanting anyone to hear him talking to himself.

"Ray, what exactly do you guys do here? What are you guys?"

"We are a ghost catching business called the Ghostbusters, we also do research on the paranormal."

"And you keep your captured ghosts in that unit? what does the unit do to ghosts?"

"It just...it just holds them in, like a crowded jail cell." he tries to explain.

Renee starts to imagine herself locked away in there, squeezed in between many unruly and irritated ghosts. She shutters at the thought.

Ray leads Renee up some stairs to the second floor. Luckily the only one there was Egon, who was busy working in the lab.

"Where's...uh, Peter and Winston?" Ray asks as he walks into the lab. Egon doesn't even look up from his beakers.

"Out getting some supplies I think."

Ray quickly browses through the large cluttered bookshelf and grabs a thick book, tucking it under his arm. Egon suddenly turn to him.

"Hey Ray..."

Ray gulps as though he has done something wrong.

"Are you feeling any better? Peter told me you tried to attack him in the sub-basement."

Ray laughs "What?! No...I was...he was just interfering with an experiment I was starting. I just pushed him aside, that's all."

"Uh huh. I see." Egon waits for Ray to explain more. Ray gulps again.

"Well, I'm researching more on spiritual communications and I just figured maybe the ghost we caught the other day would be a perfect specimen to use...since I believe it was an intelligent haunt and, uh..."

"Interesting. Have you come across anything?"

"No, not yet. Look, uh, I have to get back to work on it."

Egon turns back around to his beakers "Well, if you discover something, I'd like to know. In fact, I'd love to help. How about we..."

Peter's loud voice suddenly yells up "Egon! I got your things! Come get them. I'm not carrying all this junk up the stairs myself!"

Egon sighs. "I better help him. I don't trust Peter to handle an expensive rotary evaporator."

Egon walks out of the lab, allowing Ray to slip away into the sleeping quarters.

"Okay Renee...are you here?" Ray looks around as he sits on the edge of his bed with the book open in his lap.

"I'm here."

"Good! See this?" He holds the book out for her. "These pages explain orb colors."

Renee sits her ghostly self down next to him. Ray feels a slight chill. He smiles, knowing it means she's near.

Renee glances down the list of colors and their meanings. She never knew these kinds of things existed - paranormal studies.

"Here!" He points to the word "pink" on the list. Ray starts to read out her spirit traits. "The color pink means openness, compassion, affection and love."

Ray looks to his side where he feels the cool chill.

"I told you I was a friendly ghost," she states with a giggle.

His cheeks round as he grins widely. She flutters for him uncontrollably. She tries to ignore her feelings and tries to start a conversation.

"So...you sleep here? And live here?"

"Yep. This is my bed. Peter sleeps on that one and Egon over there. Winston there." He points out each of their beds.

"Oh, it's like a Ghostbuster dorm."

Ray smiles again and the fluttering starts again.

"So I guess none of you are married then?"

"No, we're only married to science."

"Oh," she responds as she watches Ray flip through the book.

"No, um, girlfriends either?" she shyly asks.

Ray slowly looks up from the book.

"Uh, not that I know of."

Happiness instantly surges through herself.

"Why do you ask that?" he half laughs.

"Oh, I'm just asking questions, just getting to know you, that's all."

Suddenly alarms and bells go off, scaring Renee and making her shrink back into an orb.

"What's happening?!" she squeals.

Ray slams the book shut.

"Nothing to be scared of. It just means we got a call to catch a ghost!" he shouts over the loud alarms.

Ray quickly gets up from the bed and zips up his jumpsuit all the way.

"You can hang around the house if you want. Will I see you later?!"

"Yes!" she hollers back to him.

That smile of his appears once again, and she feels herself melt.

"Good! We can get to know each other more later! I'll see ya soon!" And with that he jogs out of the room.

Renee floats her orb-shaped self down to follow him. She watches the men zip up their uniforms and gather their gear. She follows them to the garage and watches them pile into a strange looking car.

Ray, the driver, starts it up, making the engine rumble and sirens chirp. They zoom quickly out onto the street and vanish around the block.

Renee goes back inside the old firehouse and floats up to the sleeping quarters where she lays her orb-self down onto Ray's bed.

She sighs over what is probably the best day of her after life. She notices a grey sweat shirt laying on the bed next to her. Assuming it belongs to Ray, she snuggles as much as a ghost can against it.

Silly as it seems, she can no longer deny it. She's developing a little crush on a Ghostbuster.

...

 _Thanks for reading my story so far. It's my first fanfic. Hope it's okay : )_


	4. Chapter 4

The sounds of Janine's clicking keyboard echoed throughout the quiet firehouse. She hummed a tune as her eyes watched words type up onto her computer screen. These were her favorite moments, when the boys were out catching ghosts and the late afternoon appointment rush hadn't started yet. She busily worked in her brief state of calmness not realizing a curious ghost was watching her.

Renee stood next to Janine at her desk, mesmerized by her fast typing skills. The phone suddenly rang, disrupting the relaxing atmosphere. Janine quickly answered it. "Ghostbustahs," she said in her thick New York accent.

As Janine talked with the customer on the phone, Renee stared at the computer's keyboard. Concentrating, she held out her finger, lowering it slowly onto a key. The key clicked down, and she giggled as she watched the letter "H" appear on the computer's screen. It works! With excitement she tried it again, this time typing the letter "E". It worked again! Renee held her concentration and tried again.

"Okay, thank you for calling ma'am." Janine lowered the phone receiver from her ear and glanced over to her computer. Her eyes instantly went wide and she let out a gasp of fright, letting the phone slip from her hand to the floor. Janine sat frozen stiff watching her keyboard type away on its own. Her eyes blinked up to the screen where she read the word "Hello."

Janine's mouth dropped and she quickly moved up out of her chair. Breathing heavily, she looked around the room. No one else was there.

"Who did that?!" she asked out loud, fear making her voice crack. Renee floated away from the computer realizing the trouble she had just caused.

"I'm sorry Janine. I didn't mean to scare you. It's just...I wanted to..."

Renee stopped talking as Janine quickly walked out of the building, reminding Renee she couldn't hear her.

Feeling horrible, Renee lowered her finger onto the backspace button, erasing the word off the computer screen.

Janine stood outside hugging herself, breathing in the cool autumn air. "I've been working way too hard. I told them to hire more help." She gulped, leaning herself against the brick wall of the fire house.

After a few minutes, Janine cautiously entered back inside and walked up to her desk. She slowly sat herself down into her chair, her eyes shifting all around the room before landing to the computer screen. The word "Hello" was gone.

Janine sighed with relief. It must have been all in her head. She gulped and continued on with her work.

Suddenly the front door loudly swung open, Janine jumped in fright and fell out of her chair. Clutching her hand to her chest, she rose back up to her feet, hearing the sounds of the Ghostbusters proudly tromp inside. As usual, their voices boomed, making their presence very clear. The phone on her desk began to ring. Janine knew her moments of calm were officially over.

Fear instantly filled Renee as two of the Ghostbusters walked up toward her direction. Feeling like a little deer caught in a hunter's cabin, she subconsciously hid her orb self behind some filing cabinets. She watched as Egon and Winston gathered around Janine's desk discussing their future schedules. She wondered where Ray was. She hadn't seen him come in yet. Even though being invisible, she still felt uncomfortable around these other ghost-catching men.

Suddenly she heard a man cough in the distance and she glanced toward the front doorway. She instantly fluttered with happiness over the sight of him. Ray entered the room looking disheveled, with dirt smeared on his cheeks and a cigarette hanging from his mouth.

Renee reminded herself to get a grip, to stay calm and ignore her silly feelings. "He's alive and I'm dead," she repeated to herself in her mind.

Ray stepped up next to Winston. She watched him casually give Winston a cigarette and exchange a hearty laugh over the events of their crazy afternoon.

"He's a ghostbuster. I'm a ghost," her mind reminds herself.

Ray's eyes shifted around the room as he puffed away on his cigarette. She could tell by the look on his face he was looking for her, wondering if she was there. Keeping her gaze on him, she felt her silly feelings begin to overflow and soon she found herself quickly floating over to him, swirling around his body like a stripe on a candy cane.

"Whoa!" Ray yelped, making Egon and Winston look at him curiously.

"You okay Ray?" Winston asked.

Ray blinked as the cool refreshing tingles vanished away. He soon recognized the feeling. It was Renee! A smirk appeared on his face as a rosy blush splashed across his cheeks. "Ah, uh, yeah..yeah, I'm fine. I, uh, just think maybe I pulled a muscle. It's no big deal." Ray pretended to rub his back.

"Alright!" Peter walked into the room holding up three traps by the cord like trophies. "This time I will put these ghosts away." Peter gave Ray the stink eye before walking off to the basement, letting smoke from the traps trail behind him.

Curious, Renee decided to follow him.

As Peter marched along, Renee stared at the traps dangling from Peter's grasp. The site disgusted her, and pity for the ghosts began to grow within her. A strong urge to help them took over her.

Peter stepped up to the unit and unlocked the opening system, making the loading dock emerge. Renee gasped and quickly flies around Peter's head Yelling "Stop! Let them out!"

Peter winced at the sudden coldness blowing by his face.

Renee continued to swirl around his head until she heard a ghouling sound. It made her stop in her tracks.

Many other voices begin to call out. She listened to them all grumble and sneer within Peter's boxes.

"Hello?" she said, cautiously trying to communicate. The voices viciously erupted, sending Renee to float back in fright. Shouts of obscenities shot at her along with booming, demonic laughs, hissing and spitting.

These were no friendly ghosts. The scary sounds grew louder and louder, purposely aiming their nastiness at her.

Renee hovered in fear behind Peter as she watched him, one by one, install the traps, transporting the violent ghosts into the containment unit.

The voices ceased and the room went quiet. The incident left her shaken and she flew with panic out of the room. She zoomed down a hall back into the front room, passing Winston and Egon as they leaned against Janine's desk listening to her wild tale of her computer typing on its own. She flew onward up the stairs and through the dining room to the sleeping quarters. She halted instantly over the site of Ray laying on his bed with his arms folded behind his head. Slowly, she floated to him and up above him.

"Ray?" her soft voice said. Butterflies instantly danced inside of him over the sound of her voice. He quickly sat up in his bed with a grin.

"Renee! There you are. Where'd you go?"

There was a pause.

"What's wrong?" he asked as his grin slowly vanished.

"Ray," her voice sounding small. "It was horrible."

He could hear the emotion in her voice.

"What was?"

"I was watching Peter put away the ghosts..."

Ray's face went long, understanding how traumatic that would be for her to witness.

"I tried to talk to them...the ghosts in the box."

Ray's eyes lit up with curiosity. "And?! What happened?! Did you get a response? Can ghosts talk to one another?"

"Kind of. It's hard to explain. Ray, listen...those ghosts, they were disturbing."

Ray scoffed. "That's why we caught them. They were harassing a school. They put up a fight, too."

Ray swung his body around, setting his feet onto the floor, and began to take off his boots. She watched him as she thought.

"Those ghosts were at a school?"

"Yep," he replied without looking up from untying his boot.

"They were around kids?"

"Yes."

Renee's ghostly figure sat down onto the bed next to him. Ray could feel the slight movement on the mattress. He raised up from his boots to look next to him. Renee sat there gazing forward in thought.

"That's horrible, Ray. I can't imagine those ghosts around kids. I thought you..."

She turned her face to his and paused. He was looking straight at her, as though he could see her there. She couldn't remember the last time somebody looked at her like this. It began to make her emotional.

"Ray, don't move. Can you see me?"

He just shook his head no.

"Ray..."

"Yeah?"

"You're looking right at me."

"I am?" he said, trying not to move his gaze. Of course he saw nothing, but he tried to imagine a girl there anyway.

She stared at his brown eyes, giggling over how one had more of a green color than the other. He then felt a coolness lay upon the side of his face. Renee held her hand up to his cheek wishing she could touch him. Instead, her fingers just grazed through him. She pulled her hand away and turned from him sadly.

Ray blinked as he tried to stay perfectly still. "Can...can I move now?"

Renee looked back at him and began to giggle. "Yes, I'm sorry."

He chuckled along with her. She watched him laugh and her crush on him grew.

"Ray, do you think you're a good guy or a bad guy...for catching ghosts?"

"I like to think of myself as a good guy."

He sighed and laid back down onto his bed. Renee laid alongside him, listing to him talk.

"Most ghosts are trouble makers, whether they mean to be or not. I feel that I'm protecting people from things they don't know how to handle."

"And you know how to handle ghosts?"

"Yeah. So far things are working out okay. Our business is booming."

Ray noticed her go quiet.

"Do you think I'm a bad guy?" he asked, raising his eyebrows.

"I don't know," she replied in a low, unsure tone. Her reply made his stomach drop. The last thing he wanted was for her to think little of him.

"I understand you capturing violent ghosts that harass schools, but you captured me."

"You're different, Renee. You're making me rethink things. Maybe there are nice ghosts out there."

She studied the side of his face as he explained.

"I've been thinking of designing a tool that could read...calculate ghost auras, so that way we don't end up kidnapping other friendly ghosts like yourself."

She felt herself flutter. "You...you can do that?"

He sucked in his lip and pinched his eyebrows together. "Hmm...possibly, maybe with your help. I need to do more research. If I gather some information together, make a design...it could work."

He noticed her go silent again.

"Do...do you not like that idea?"

"Oh! I love it! I'd love to help you. I was just...just admiring how smart you are."

She watched him blush.

"Thanks. Most women don't appreciate that trait."

She laughed. "What do you mean? Women love smart guys!"

"Oh, no they don't. They want a rock and roll type. This is the age of MTV. Girls want Bon Jovi, not a chubby parapsychologist."

Renee burst with laughter. "Ray, don't be so hard on yourself."

"I'm not. It's just the truth."

She watched him pout.

"Well, if I was alive, I'd go out with you."

Those dancing butterflies suddenly appeared inside of him again. It caught him off guard. Was he developing feelings for this spirit girl? He wondered, but pushed the thought aside.

"Even though I would feel inferior to you, I would have loved to have gone on a date with you."

"Inferior? Why?" His eyebrows pinched together.

"Um, because you're well educated. You have drive and focus. In my life, I didn't get a lot of education. I had to worry about surviving. I didn't have much going for me. I lived paycheck to paycheck. Before I died, I was just a cashier. You probably wouldn't have given me the time or day."

"Yes I would."

"Oh, right."

"Renee, don't be so hard on yourself."

He used her own words against her. She sighed in defeat and watched him move into a comfortable position, resting his head on his pillow.

"Renee, can I ask you something?"

"Anything."

"How did you...you know...pass?"

"Oh, um.." She snuggled closer against him. He could feel her coolness but didn't seem to mind it. He kind of liked knowing that she was near.

"It was a accident."

"You don't have to talk about it if you don't want."

"No, I can tell you." She paused as she gathered her thoughts. "It was a rainy September day. I was at work at the corner store. It was a typical day until a man came in with a gun."

"A robbery?"

"Not really. The man was just insane. He kept calling himself a warrior demon and was threatening to shoot us all.

There was this boy there. He was maybe 12, and he was crying. I think he was there by himself. I felt the need to protect him. Through the chaos, the mad man kept focusing his attention on me and the kid. I remember every time he did, I would hide the kid behind my back to shelter him from whatever this mad man was going to do. There was an off-duty cop in the store at the time. He also had a gun. The next moment, the mad man threatened me and the kid, the cop took a shot. The bullet struck the mad man in the shoulder which made his arm and hand flinch, causing him to pull the trigger on his own gun. The gun went off and I instinctively pushed the kid away to the ground before I felt it hit me."

"Renee, I'm...I'm really sorry that happened to you."

"The mad man got to live. Everyone left unharmed. The boy got to go home safe and sound. I was the only one that didn't make it."

"But It sounds like you saved that boy's life."

She went silent again.

"You're a hero, Renee. You died a hero."

"Thanks Ray" she said in a tearful voice. "And now here I am, lying in bed with a chubby parapsychologist."

He laughed, which made her giggle through her tears.

"Well, I'm glad you're here Renee."

She laid there relaxing next to him in comfortable silence. If her feelings for him were a flower, it would be in full bloom right now.

"Ray?"

"Hmm?"

"If we did go on a date, where would you take me?"

"Wherever you want to go."

"Could we get some pizza? I really miss it."

He chuckled. "Sure!"

 _Thanks for all the encouraging comments everyone! Glad everyone's enjoying my story : )_


	5. Chapter 5

At a work table covered with stacks of books about paranormal discoveries, science mathematics and mechanical designs, Ray sat consuming as much information as he could. Crumpled up papers with scribbled equations were scattered along the floor around his chair. Nearby, Renee dreamily watched him as he analyzed his notes, jotted things down and examined pieces of metallic materials. She stared at his face. His deep concentration made the worry lines appear across his forehead. She liked how his dark eyebrows furrowed over a problem, then lifted up excitably after solving it. How those pretty plump lips of his chewed the end of his pencil while in thought. He was adorable and she was hopelessly smitten by the parapsychologist.

She felt a definite connection with him, and it was more than just being able to talk to him. There was a sense of belonging, as though she was supposed to be with him. After a long year of being a lost ghost, she finally found a comfortable place. And it was with Ray.

Renee glanced over the mess scattered across the table and spotted a book. "Physic Abilities" she read out loud. Looking over to Ray, she noticed the corner of his mouth curl up into a small smile and how that corner smile appeared whenever she spoke to him.

"Do you think you might be physic?" she asked.

He didn't look up from his work as he answered. "Possibly. It could be why I can talk to you. Maybe I have some sort of ability."

"Have you tried talking to other ghosts?"

Ray sighed. "Yes, but with no luck. It still seems I can only talk to you."

"I'm sorry."

Ray half laughed. "I like talking to you Ren."

She felt her whole ghostly orb flutter. "He just gave me a nick name!" she squealed silently to herself with delight, like a boy-crazed teenager.

Suddenly she heard footsteps approach them and the door creak open.

"Ray, there you are." Egon approached the work table with papers in his hand. "I found more information on the study of energy differences. I thought it could be useful for your research."

Ray blinked up at him and eagerly took the papers. "Thanks!"

"Say Ray, Janine mentioned something very interesting the other day."

"Uh hmm," Ray answered without looking up from his work.

"She said her computer typed on its own."

"Uh hmm."

"The word 'Hello' typed onto the screen."

Ray didn't respond and kept his focus on his work. Egon leaned over, gently resting both his hands onto the table, finally gaining Ray's attention.

"Would you know anything about that?"

Ray blinked up at Egon's round glasses. "What...what do you mean?"

"What I mean is I know you kept a ghost in a trap box and now you're up here researching spirit communications."

Ray set down his pencil and glanced downward as though being caught.

"Ray, where is this ghost of yours? Is it still in the box?"

Ray looked up at Egon with his mouth dangling open, struggling to find the words to explain. His hand nervously began to scratch the back of his head, messing up his brown hair.

"Uh...um..I don't..um, well..."

Suddenly the alarms and bells went off, giving Ray a chance to escape Egon's questioning. "Time to catch some ghosts!" he said before jumping out of his chair and sliding down the poll to get changed. Egon stood there by the work table shaking his head.

Renee quickly followed Ray downstairs where the other men were slipping on their jumpsuits. She floated up to Ray as he quickly zipped up his own suit.

"Ray! I wanna go with you. I want to see what you guys do."

Ray looked around, making sure no one was paying attention to him before responding.

"Ren, I don't think that's wise. You could get hurt. I'd worry about you."

She's speechless for a moment over his sweet concern for her.

"But Ray..."

"If you got accidentally hit by a proton blast or attacked by some crazed ghost, I, uh, just think you should stay here. But you know, you can do whatever you want. I can't stop you."

"You really want me to stay here, don't you?"

Ray only gave her a nod 'yes' along with a worried puppy dog look on his face.

"Alright, I'll stay," she sighed.

His worried face melted into a smile before jogging off to the driver side of their strange car. Renee felt a swoosh of force against her orb as Egon rushed past her toward the car. Renee floated there in the garage, watching them once again zoom away.

The doors opened as Ray entered the warm library, wiping rain water off his brow. The muffled sound of thunder rumbled from outside. As he marched his way through the room, people gawked and stared. His 'Ghostbuster' jumpsuit swooshed loudly underneath his puffy rain-soaked jacket and his big black boots thumped with each step he took.

An old librarian trotted over to him happily.

"Excuse me sir." Ray stopped and looked at her. She grinned at him as she spoke. "I want to thank you again for getting rid of that horrid ghost problem we had here a couple of months ago. Things here have never been better."

"Oh, uh, you're welcome."

"Yes, you men were lifesavers. Keep up the good work."

"Thanks ma'am."

"Is there anything I can help you with?"

"Sure, um, where are the microfilm machines?"

"Oh! Ah, yes, just over there in the back...to your left." She pointed her skinny finger in the direction.

"Thanks again," he said before walking away.

"No. Thank you sir," she said through her grin.

The microfilm machine clicked as Ray turned the knob, watching different news articles from 1983 slide before his eyes. He passed so many his eyes began to blur. Then, finally, the dates on the articles came to the month of September. His hand on the knob slowed, hoping to find some kind of news on Renee's fateful day. Click after click, Ray began to feel himself become anxious.

Then there it was, a small story in a Monday paper. His eyes read the story, the witness accounts, the details, Renee's heroic actions. There was a small black and white photo of the perpetrator.

"So that's the guy who killed Renee." His heart instantly dropped. He continued to read on. The words trailed off to the next page, and so with a click of the knob Ray slid the page over. His heart instantly beat with speed. There before his eyes was a photo of Renee, a young women smiling with apple cheeks and bright eyes. This cute girl was his ghost? His eyes lingered on her photo and the words below it. " _Renee Maywood, age 29._ " He could feel his heart dance around wildly inside his chest. Love and sadness quickly rushed over him. This sweet girl shouldn't have had to die that day. Why couldn't he have met her when she was alive he pondered while staring at her face.

He quickly printed a copy of the news article and left the library feeling emotionally drained. Everything Renee told him was true. She really did die that way. She really is a ghost. And he really can talk to her.

Classical music wafted up from the first floor. Janine was down there working at her desk again. To keep from causing more trouble, Renee decided to stay away, keeping herself in the sleeping quarters.

The rain trickled against the window. The sound was soothing and Renee stretched out on top of Ray's bed as much as a ghost could. She rolled onto her side, staring at a grey sweatshirt laying on the bed next to her. Her hand reached out to touch it but her finger tips fell through. She sighed.

Her eyes spotted more crumpled up papers and more scientific-looking books by his bedside. She smiled at how lucky she had been to have found Ray. He was working so hard on his ghost aura tool and figuring out why there was such a strong communication between the two of them. She admired Ray's intelligence and believed in him to find the answers.

Renee's mind began to reminisce about the night before, how they talked for hours. Well, until the other guys decided to enter the sleeping quarters to sleep. Ray was easy to talk to and she enjoyed every minute of his company. They shared stories and interests. He talked about his passion for paranormal studies, educating her about the world of science, things she had never known about before. She also noticed she could make him laugh, which she made sure to always try, just to see that smile of his.

Suddenly she heard men's voices echo from downstairs. The boys were back! She fluttered happily and floated off the bed, zooming her way downstairs. Already gathered around Janine's desk were the Ghostbusters smoking and laughing things up. She looked all around but didn't see Ray with them. She shrunk sadly.

"Hey, any of you guys worried about Ray?" Winston asked after taking a drag from his cigarette.

"Why? What?" Peter looked between Egon and Winston.

Egon looked at Winston. "I too have noticed his strange behaviors."

"Like what?" Peter asked through the cigarette dangling from his lips.

"The boy's zonked. He needs some rest."

Egon nodded, agreeing with Winston and added, "Yes, and he's also been increasingly avoidant lately. But I guess I can understand. He is, in fact, in the middle of research. But what his research contains I am still trying to figure out."

"What kind of research?" Peter looked to Egon.

"Spirit communications."

"What? Is he thinking he can figure out how to talk to ghosts? Ghosts don't speak. They only go, 'BOO!'"

Winston jumped and Peter chuckled and slapped his back. Peter then looked at the both of them with a smirk. "What Ray needs is to get out of this building and out of that lab and get laid."

Winston laughed out cigarette smoke and Egon rolled his eyes with a grin.

"Come on...we all know it. When was the last time he went out with a girl?" Peter snapped his fingers suddenly as a thought pops into his mind. "You know what, I'll set him up. I'll figure something out."

"Alright, enough talk on Ray's sex life. What's for dinner?" Egon crossed his arms against his chest.

Winston stood up straight and answered, "Barbecued ribs."

Peter pointed his cigarette at Winston "Yes! Yes, I like that idea. That sounds good, with some potato salad. Yes."

"Well, let's go then! I know a good place." Winston led the men back to the garage and they left. Renee's ghostly figure sadly floated back upstairs.

It wasn't until many minutes later that Ray finally showed up. Janine watched him slowly walk in wet and haggard.

"Dr. Stantz, are you feeling okay?"

His tired eyes glanced over to her. "I'm...I'm gonna go lay down for a while."

"The guys went to get food. I'll let them know you're back."

He only nodded as he sluggishly made his way up the stairs. His heart began to beat faster with each step toward the sleeping quarters, knowing Renee was most likely to be in there. Butterflies appeared in his stomach as he pushed the door open. There was no one in there, just beds and wet windows with views of the rainy weather outside.

He entered quietly as his brown eyes scanned the room. He let out a loud cough and rubbed his aching head.

"Ray?" he heard her sweet voice ask.

"Hi Ren." He wobbled over and sat down on the end of his bed.

"Ray, you don't look well."

"I don't feel well."

He felt coolness graze his skin, letting him know she was near.

"You're sick."

He looked over at nothingness, but she stared back at his puppy dog eyes, droopy with illness.

"Here, let me help."

Ray began to feel something tug at his boots. Looking down, he watched his boot laces untie themselves. His droopy eyes widened over the sight.

"There. But you have to kick them off for me."

One by one Ray kicked off his boots. He released a relieving moan followed by another cough.

"You need to get out of those wet clothes before you catch more of a chill than you might already have."

He wobbly raised up from the bed onto his feet and slowly removed his puffy rain-soaked jacket, dropping it to the floor. His eyes looked down, feeling a small tug from the zipper of his jumpsuit. Renee moved in front of him, concentrating, her fingers grasping at his zipper.

He felt her close coolness and his heart began to thump wildly. He wondered if she could hear it. Renee innocently pulled the zipper down with the intention of getting him out of the wet jumpsuit and into bed. But when she glanced up at his face, her fingers halted. She realized how close they were. His head hung low and the love-sick expression on his face made her move even closer into him. Their faces were now inches apart. Ray felt her presence, her coolness giving him goose bumps. He gulped nervously and tried to picture that cute girl from the photo standing there in front of him. Without moving her gaze from his, she seductively began to pull the zipper slowly down. She watched his chest rise and fall, his pouty lips part as if waiting for hers to collide with his.

She sighed over the sight of him, this perfect boy with wet hair sticking against his forehead. She closed her eyes and lifted her chin up, moving her lips closer and closer toward his.

A male voice suddenly interrupts the moment making Ray and Renee jump apart. "Hey! There you are Ray!"

"Oh, uh, hey!" Ray's eyebrows bounced up smiling like nothing had happened.

"There's food downstairs if you're hungry. You look awful." Peter looked him up and down. Ray nervously sat back down onto his bed, hoping Peter hadn't noticed his blushing cheeks.

"Uh, I'm sick Peter. I think I have a cold or something." He coughed loudly.

Peter leaned against the door frame nodding. Perhaps this was the cause of Ray's odd behavior. He's just sick, Peter thought as he studied his sick friend.

"Alright. Well, I'll tell the guys you won't be coming then."

"What did you pick up?" Ray asked as another cough escaped him.

"Ribs and potato salad."

Usually that would make Ray's mouth water, but right now it made him queasy.

"You guys go ahead. I'm not hungry."

"Alright. Get some sleep, will ya? Everyone's worried about you." Peter then turned and walked away.

Ray fell backward onto his bed and covered his moaning face with his hands. He felt ill, tired and also confused. What was this sweet ghost girl doing to him? Letting out a sigh, he ran his fingers up through his hair. He then moved back up onto his feet where he heard Renee begin to chuckle.

"What?" Ray asked as he slipped out of his jumpsuit, revealing his black t-shirt and brown pants.

"Your hair."

Ray patted down his wild, puffed-up hair. "Oh." He smiled bashfully.

"Here..."

Ray watched as the sheets of his bed peeled back on their own.

"Peter's right, you need rest," he heard her giggling voice tell him.

He crawled into the bed and plopped his aching head onto his cool pillow. He then felt the sheets being pulled over him, tucking him in.

"Thanks Ren. You're so good to me." He sighed into his pillow and soon drifted off into a deep sleep.

She curled up next to him almost protectively, listening to him snore away when she glanced to his jacket on the floor and noticed something sticking out from the pocket. Curious, she floated over to it, her concentration letting her finger tips pull out the folded up papers. Renee let out a gasp as a photo of herself looked back at her. She looked so happy, so pretty, so...alive! Ghostly tears began to form in her eyes and she quickly floated into a corner of the room and quietly sobbed. "I don't want to be dead! It's not fair! I want to be with Ray!"


	6. Chapter 6

"Alright Ren, almost done." Ray held a small blinking device out in her direction.

"You still there?" Ray asked, looking from his device to the corner of the room and back to his device.

"Yes," she quietly responded.

Ray's shoulders lowered with disappointment as he studied his home-made device. He sighed loudly.

"Well, it's still not reading things correctly. It needs more adjustments." He stepped back to his table, setting the blinking device down.

"Thanks for helping me," Ray said as he shuffled through his stack of notes. His eyes read over his sloppy hand writing.

"Sure."

He heard the sadness in her voice.

"Ren?"

"Hmm?"

"Anything wrong? I mean, if you're not in the mood to help me right now, we can..."

"No, it's okay. I'm okay," she lied.

"Are you sure?" He turned around from the table with a concerned expression. He looked out to the empty corner of the room. Renee stared at his face, and his eyes looked up and down, not knowing where to hold their gaze. How she wished he could see her.

"Ray, I saw the news article," she finally admitted.

"News article?" His eyebrows scrunched and then relaxed as he realized what she was talking about. "Oh..."

"It was sticking out of your pocket. I looked at it while you slept."

"Ren, I'm sorry. I was just curious. I didn't think you were lying to me or anything. I just needed to find out."

"It's okay. I'm glad you found it, and it was nice to see myself again...alive." Her voice sadly trailed off.

Ray now understood why she sounded so down today. He knew she wasn't happy with her situation and he felt bad for bringing back her bad memories.

"It was nice to see your face too," he replied.

She watched as Ray pulled out the news article from the pocket of his jacket and stared down at her photo.

"You don't know how excited I was to discover your photo." He then blurted out, "You're cute."

She was speechless and didn't know how to respond. The guy she was crazy about had just called her cute.

"I...I am?" her words stumbled out.

His mouth stretched into a full bashful grin. "Yeah."

Just then, Janine walked into the room with a tray carrying a hot bowl of soup.

"Dr. Stantz! What are you doing out of bed?"

Her nasally voice startled him. Ray took in a deep breath. "Uh, I was just..."

"Your work can wait. Move it!" She ordered him back to his bed. He could hear Renee giggling at him.

Janine sat the tray down onto Ray's lap, who was now back in bed. The hot steam from the soup tickled his chin.

"There, now you just sit here and eat." She then turned to leave.

"Thanks," Ray shouted to her as she walked out of the room and down the hall.

"They just don't pay me enough around here. Now I'm playing nurse," she grumbled to herself.

"I like her," Renee said as she sat at the foot of his bed. She appreciated Janine's care for Ray. She envied it, wishing she could be the one to take care of him.

Ray let out a cough and stared down at his tray.

"She didn't give me a drink," he pouted.

Renee instantly floated up off the bed. This was her chance!

"I'll get it for you!"

"You?"

"Yes!"

Ray stared outward, feeling unsure about the idea.

"I can do it Ray. Don't worry."

"Um, well, alright. Just don't let anyone see you." He let out another cough.

"Of course. Be right back!"

She then quickly floated to the kitchen where she abruptly stopped in her tracks. There, against the fridge, Egon held Janine in his arms as they passionately kissed.

Even though a ghost, Renee still felt the need to hide herself. She observed the romantic scene displaying itself in front of her. Again she felt envious of Janine and her ability to kiss.

"Egon." Janine pulled her lips from his.

"Egon, so what do you wanna do for tomorrow?"

Egon leaned down to snag another kiss from her lips.

"Tomorrow?"

"Yes, silly. Halloween!"

He gave her another kiss.

"Oh yeah, Halloween," he mumbled while continuing to kiss down her neck.

"My friend Rachel is throwing a big party at her place. You wanna go?"

"Hmm...I don't know. I'm not too keen on dressing up in costumes."

She raised an eye brow at him. "Egon, you tromp around New York City in a silly jumpsuit with a proton pack on your back. I think you can handle wearing a costume."

Egon sighed in defeat and then smiled down at the woman in his arms.

"Alright. Fine. We'll go."

Janine's face lit up. "Great! We're going as Tinker Bell and Peter Pan," she decided for the both of them and rested her face down against his chest with a satisfied smile. Egon hugged her back, rolling his eyes.

The phone began to ring, and Janine sadly unfolded herself from Egon's embrace. "Duty calls," she sighed.

Egon adjusted his glasses as his smirking face checked out Janine's backside while she walked out of the kitchen. He soon followed, leaving Renee alone in the room.

Renee was stunned over this discovery. Janine and Egon were an item! She wondered if Ray knew. Without more delay, she quickly floated over to the fridge and studied it as if it was an intimidating foe.

"Alright Renee, you can do this. This is for Ray." Concentrating with all her might, she grabbed the handle and pulled. She didn't seem to notice Egon swiftly walk back into the kitchen toward the table. He reached for his forgotten half-eaten apple. As he turned to leave, he spotted the fridge door creak open on its own. He stared curiously at the fridge door, walking up to it to examine.

"Huh? Maybe I didn't close it all the way earlier," he mumbled before taking a bite of his apple and slamming the fridge door shut before walking out of the room.

Frustrated, Renee once again pulled at the door. It finally popped open. Renee glanced all around the inside of the fridge deciding on what to get Ray.

"Perfect!" She reached for the small bottles of juice. Making sure no one else was around, she grabbed a hold of one and carefully removed it from the fridge. Without shutting the fridge door, she zoomed out of the kitchen and back to Ray.

Ray sat himself up in bed with wide eyes as he watched a floating juice bottle bob over to his direction. He then heard Renee's proud voice.

"Here Ray! I told you I could get you a drink."

The cold juice bottle plopped down onto the bed and Ray reached for it. "Thanks Ren."

Watching him drink sent happiness throughout herself, proving that she could take care of him just as well as Janine could. Ray's eyes widened again as a spoon full of soup hovered before his face. His mouth instinctively opened, allowing the spoon to pour warm soup onto his tongue. He swallowed it, feeling the warm liquid ease his aching sore throat. Another spoonful entered his mouth as he heard Renee begin to talk.

"Ray?"

He swallowed down the soup before responding. "Yeah?"

She shoved another spoonful of soup into his mouth.

"How long have Janine and Egon been together?"

"What?!" Ray coughed, spitting out his soup. It dribbled down his chin. Renee dropped the spoon back into the bowl, watching Ray cough up more soup.

"Oh Ray, here.." She held up a napkin for him and he wiped his mouth.

"I guess you didn't know they were a couple?"

"A couple?! Egon and Janine?"

"It sure looked like they were a couple. I saw them kissing in the kitchen."

Ray held his hand up to his forehead and then slid his fingers through his hair.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, and they're even going to a Halloween party together."

Ray blinked his eyes over this surprising information. "I didn't notice they were a, uh..."

"Maybe their relationship is a secret?"

"Peter would kill him if he found out."

"You're not going to tell, are you?"

"No, no." Ray then thought to himself, 'I think maybe I could use this to my advantage.'

"They looked happy together."

"I wonder how long he's been seeing Janine?" Ray pondered out loud.

"Why would Peter be mad? Does he like Janine?"

"No, Janine's part of the staff. Peter doesn't want us foolin' around with co-workers."

"Oh, I get it now."

Silence fell between them as Ray finished his soup while Renee lounged at the foot of his bed. Ray's mind was in deep thought. He thought of Egon and his secret love affair. Ray couldn't even remember the last time he kissed a woman, or even had a woman in his life. The thought made him feel empty. Then Renee's sweet face popped into his mind. She had been so wonderful to him and a real blast to have around. He had never felt so close and comfortable with a woman before. If only she wasn't a ghost, he would have asked her out in a heartbeat. Ray pondered that for a second. Why couldn't he ask her out? Would that be weird if he did? Maybe they could just go out as friends. She's probably feeling cooped up being here all the time.

Ray gulped nervously as his eyes looked around the room for her.

"Hey, uh, Ren?"

"Yeah Ray?"

"Umm..."

She sat up from the bed and stared at him, waiting for him to continue. He looked so adorably nervous and she wondered why.

"Umm...do you, I mean..."

A smile grew upon her face as she watched him.

"What Ray?"

"Um, for Halloween..."

"Yeah?"

"Would you like to maybe, um...do something with me?"

She was taken aback. 'Is he asking me out?!' she wondered as her whole ghostly form fluttered with happiness.

"I just thought it would be nice to get out and, you know...do something."

"Ray..."

"We don't have to do anything special."

She giggled. "Ray..."

"Maybe we could just talk somewhere nice, like the park or the..."

"Ray!"

"Huh?"

"I'd love to go out with you."

"You would?! Uh, that's great! Um, good, good." He sounded relieved but excited.

"It sounds like fun," she replied calmly, holding in her squeals of joy from him to hear.

He looked down at his empty soup bowl with a smile. He just asked a ghost out. This could be the craziest or the most wonderful thing he's ever done.

 _Again, thanks for the positive reviews! They keep me motivated. I've been sick with a cold, so I will write the next chapter as soon as I can._


	7. Chapter 7

The large locker door swung open as Ray stood before it. Renee watched as he removed the heavy gear from the belt of his uniform. He looked exhausted and was covered in all kinds of dirt and debris. Never had she seen him so messy. A desire to jump into his arms and smoother his face with welcome-home kisses ached within her.

She sighed over the thought and wished she had that ability. Instead she only watched him in happy silence. He moved slow, placing his ghost-catching gear into the locker with care. The other men had already changed into their normal clothes and had gathered to chit chat about their evening plans.

"What you got goin' on Peter?" Winston asked as he pulled out a cigarette.

"You remember a couple of weeks ago, that poltergeist case we had at that spa?"

"Yeah," Winston replied as he lit his cigarette.

"You remember that cute blonde masseuse that owned that place?"

Winston slowly grinned. "Yeah."

"I'm taking her out tonight," Peter said with a smug.

Winston pulled the cigarette from his mouth to let the smoke pour out from his grinning lips. "Alright, Venkman!" They both gave each other a proud manly nod and laughed.

Egon shut the door of his locker with a duffle bag in his hand. He turned around to Peter and Winston.

"What about you?" Winston looked straight at Egon through his cigarette smoke.

Egon nervously clutched his duffle bag and the Peter Pan costume that hid inside to his chest. "Um, just gonna run some tests in the lab, then maybe catch a bite to eat."

"If you want, you can come tag along with us. Me and my friends are bar hopping tonight." Winston happily tried to include Egon.

"Thanks for the invitation, but I think I'll keep my evening low key."

The corner of Ray's mouth smirked over Egon's lie, knowing quite well Egon would be out partying it up somewhere with Janine tonight.

"Ray, what about you?" Ray could hear the men ask behind his back. Ray's smirk vanished as he quickly tried to think of something to say. Without looking away from the inside of his locker, he answered.

"Um, well, there's this neat bookstore I was going to check out."

The men snickered at him. "A bookstore? On Halloween?"

"It's not just any bookstore, it's occult books and it's..."

Peter snickered again, interrupting him.

"Alright Ray, while you're looking at books, I will be looking at my beautiful date," Peter playfully bragged.

The men continued to chat on as they strolled off toward Janine's desk, leaving Ray alone by his locker.

Ray lowered his head with a frown. Renee watched, adoring him so much she could no longer stand it.

Suddenly, Ray felt a cool tingle swirl up around his body. He recognized the lovingly act of affection only a ghost could display. It was Renee, and a huge smile grew upon his face.

"I think browsing an occult bookstore is a perfect way to spend Halloween," he heard her voice say.

"Yeah?" His grinning eyes blinked.

She giggled.

"You guys sure had a busy day."

Ray exhaled loudly. "Yeah, It's Halloween, so we've had calls constantly. Every kind of spookual pest is out and about today."

"But you guys are taking tonight off?"

"Yep. We figured Halloween is the one night spirits can arise and wander the earth, so we've all decided to let the ghosts have their one night of fun so we can have our one night of fun."

She giggled again.

Renee couldn't keep her eyes off of him. He was well groomed and now dressed in a clean flannel shirt. Ray's thick fingers flipped through book after book inside the cozy bookstore. Outside, trick-or-treaters skipped by the shop windows, Renee smiled at their costumes and reminisced on the taste of Halloween candy.

Her smile moved toward Ray as he read beside her.

"You love to read, don't you?"

Ray's lips curled into a smile as he nodded yes. "What about you?" he asked.

"Me? I guess you could say I was a bookworm, but I read the classics and fiction, not so much of the scientific type of stuff that you like."

She glanced all around the store at the many floor-to-ceiling bookshelves and jars of odd mystical objects and herbs, then glanced back to Ray. "This is a neat little place."

"Yeah, I hope to own a place like this one day. Maybe when I retire, like that guy over there..." Ray motioned a nod toward the old man behind the cash register.

Renee giggled. "I can see you owning an occult bookstore."

Ray smiled and began to browse at more books on the shelves.

Glancing down, she noticed a stack of ancient-looking books. Making sure no one was watching, she began to flip through one. Finding it uninteresting, she moved on to the next book in the pile - 'The Spirits Book' by Allan Kardec. Renee read out loud. Her words caught Ray's attention and he glanced down. She watched as his eyebrows raised upward.

"That's a classic, a very important book to spiritualists."

"Really?"

"Yeah. It was written by a Frenchman who claimed he had the ability to talk to this certain group of spirits who identified themselves as 'the spirit of truth.' He would give them questions and they would answer him."

"So it's possible then? Living people can speak to spirits?"

"I believe that now." Ray smiled in the direction of her voice.

Renee's curiosity was in full bloom. "What kind of questions did he ask these spirits?"

"The book covers pretty much everything you'd want to know about a spirit, like, what are they? What's the afterlife like? Things spirits can do. Those sorts of topics. I have a copy of that book at home."

Renee was intrigued and began to flip through the book's pages as Ray turned his attention back to the books on the shelves.

"Ray, is your copy written in French, too?"

Ray glanced down once again to her book. "No, I have an English copy. Don't worry," he grinned, glancing back to the shelves.

Disappointed, Renee slammed the book shut. The action caught the attention of the storekeeper. The old man behind the cash register adjusted his glasses as his mouth hung low in disbelief. Ray glanced over his shoulder toward the old man and whispered to Renee.

"Maybe it's time to go."

"Good idea," she agreed.

Ray casually exited the store with Renee by his side as the man behind the cash register still focused his shocked eyes upon the book that had just shut on its own.

"I'm sorry about that," Renee apologized as they strolled down the busy city street.

"It's alright," Ray smiled. "You gave that guy a spooky story to tell now."

She half laughed. "Yeah"

"Ray?"

"Yeah."

"I'm glad you're feeling better."

"Thanks to you and your nursing skills."

Street lamps and headlights flicked on as the remaining daylight vanished away. The sounds of Halloween parties drifted from apartment building to apartment building as lit up orange jack o' lanterns sat smiling on porches. Ray and Renee passed a corner bar where they could hear the sounds of drunken laughter boom from inside.

"Where are we going?" She looked over to Ray innocently as they walked on.

"There's a place I know where we can talk...where we can't scare anybody."

The further down the street they got, the darker it became. Ray led her to what looked like a gated park. She watched as Ray pushed open a creaking brass gate and entered inside. She followed with curiosity.

Renee glanced around and let out a gasp of wonder. It was an old cemetery, quiet and untouched. A thin layer of fog hazed along the ground. The roots from bushes and trees wrapped around stone statues of angels and other religious figures. Cracked tombstones stood among the tall grass. Gas lamps glowed and flickered, giving the place an even more eerie atmosphere.

"I used to come here a lot, before we started Ghostbusters. When I was in college studying paranormal studies, I would come here in hopes to see a ghost."

"You'd come here alone?"

"Yeah. It was a great place to study and get homework done."

She giggled. "It's beautiful...I guess...in a romantic kind of gothic way."

She followed Ray to the heart of the cemetery, a circular area where in the middle a dried up stone fountain sat surrounded by large tombs. She watched Ray take a seat on the edge of the old fountain and smile. Most people would not dare step foot in a place like this, especially on a Halloween night. But Ray was different. He looked at his surroundings with a sense of curiosity and wonder. She floated over to him and took a seat next to him.

"Did you ever see a ghost here?" she asked.

"No. I only experienced the sensation of being watched." He turned his head, looking to his side where she sat. "I never thought I would actually bring a ghost here."

"Funny how things work out," she smiled at him.

He bashfully looked down into his lap and Renee's eyes studied the side of his face adoringly.

"You're the, um, first person I've ever brought here."

"Oh?"

"Ren, to be honest, I'm pretty nervous right now."

"Why? Because you're sitting in a graveyard on Halloween night?"

He chuckled. "And talking to a ghost," he playfully added.

"Why are you nervous?" she sweetly asked.

"I, uh, haven't been on a date in a while."

"How come?"

"I've been busy working building the Ghostbusters and I just haven't, you know, met anyone."

She watched his lips pinch together and his eyes blink nervously as though he wanted to say something else to her, but couldn't.

Suddenly there was a loud rustle in the bushes. It startled Ray and they both watched as a raggedy cat scampered out from the leaves and into the fog. Renee giggled at Ray's look of relief. She hovered off the edge of the fountain and moved toward the tombs. She examined them and read out loud the names written on the plaques. Ray stood up and followed her voice.

"I wonder if these people are now ghosts like me?" she pondered out loud.

"Possibly, or they moved on into the light," Ray said as he also glanced at the plaques.

Renee frowned and looked up from the plaques to Ray.

"How come I didn't go to heaven?"

"Did you see any kind of light when you, um, died?"

"No, I didn't. I was alone and confused." Her sad eyes blinked down at a plaque in front of her.

"They say if you're stuck as a ghost, it means you have unfinished business here on earth."

Renee thought about that before she answered. "I had no kids or boyfriend. Nothing. I don't know why I would be stuck here."

The word "boyfriend" hung in Ray's ears.

"So, when was the last time you were on a date?" Ray asked, trying to lighten the mood.

A small smile grew across her face. "Well, first of all I never thought I would be going out on dates in my afterlife."

"Well, I'm glad you are."

"Me too. You shouldn't be nervous, Ray. I'm having a wonderful time with you."

She glanced up at Ray's puppy-dog eyes.

"Ren?"

"Yeah?" she replied, almost in a whisper.

"I wish I could see you." His eyelids lowered with sadness.

Renee sighed and moved before him. She placed her fingertips up to his cheek. Ray felt the cold sensation of her touch against his skin and he lifted his hand up to touch her back, but nothing was there. She slid her fingers from his face and placed them against his hand. Ray's eyes went wide as he felt an invisible hand touch his own. Cold tingles moved in between his fingers. Renee grinned up at him and there it was...that big wonderful smile of his on his face. Renee moved closer to him, lowering her hand from his With extreme concentration, she wrapped her arms around his body. Ray gasped over the invisible hug.

"Ren?"

"Yeah?" she whispered.

"The past couple of days have been, well, amazing! You've changed my whole perspective on spiritual communications. I have a whole new outlook on the theories of afterlife. I feel like you have opened a new world for me to discover and resolve.

She blinked as she listened, suddenly feeling an odd sense of dread.

"Do you think what we are doing is wrong?" she asked, still hugging onto him.

"Wrong?" Ray thought about her question. "What do you mean?"

"Ray, maybe you're not supposed to resolve the mysteries of the afterlife. Maybe I'm not supposed to be talking to you. Maybe I'm breaking a ghost rule by talking to the living. I don't know."

"I'm willing to break the rules. I'm a scientist. I need to find answers. Ren, I think we will be OK. We haven't done any harm. If anything we're doing good. We're building a ghost aura tool together. It's going to be great!"

His enthusiasm made her feelings of dread melt away.

"Renee?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm glad I found you."

Waves of joy shot through her and she gripped him tighter, feeling proud of herself for not falling through him this time. She noticed her concentration skills were getting stronger. If only she could hug him as if she were alive.

"Ray?"

"Hmm?"

"Ray, I have something I have to tell you."

"Yeah?"

She paused for a second as she gathered her thoughts and then bravely spat out her feelings.

"I'm crazy about you."

His brown eyes stared outward and his eyebrows raised up slightly.

"I've never met anyone like you, Ray. You're smart and sweet, funny, and your intelligence is beyond amazing."

Ray stood speechless as he listened.

"I, uh, know it's crazy for a ghost to fall for a Ghostbuster, but with you I just can't help it. I care about you, Ray."

She began to feel a little nervous when he didn't respond right away. She stared into his brown eyes waiting for him to speak. Then finally he spoke.

"Renee, I'm crazy about you, too."

Renee felt herself melt into a blob of love.

"Really?" Her voice sounded emotionally shaky.

"I was kind of confused about how I felt about you. At first you were just my friend and I felt lucky to actually know a ghost. But you've been so kind and I felt so comfortable around you. I guess I just slowly fell for you."

He bashfully looked downward, seeming surprised by how open he had just become. Renee looked at him beaming with love.

"Ray?"

"Yes?"

"Can I kiss you?"

Ray blinked his eyes upward and gulped as a wide smile splashed across his face. Taking his expression as a yes, she slowly moved her face toward his. She noticed his lips pucker out expecting hers. She stopped and just stared at his mouth. A moment passed before Ray questioned her.

"Ren? Is everything okay? I thought you were, uh, gonna..."

"I want to. I really want to, but..."

"But what?"

"I'm so nervous."

Ray laughed to himself. Well this is a first, a girl nervous about kissing me.

"I'm nervous, too. I don't know what to expect from a ghost kiss."

"I can't concentrate." Renee stared at Ray's mouth in frustration.

"Ren, you don't have to kiss me if it's too much too..."

"Oh Ray, I want to kiss you. I have wanted to kiss you since the day you freed me from that trap box.

"You have?" Ray's cheeks turned pink.

"Ray, I think you're so...I think you're..."

"I'm what?" he smiled.

She sighed. "Cute," and quickly she moved her face upward. Her cool lips crashed against his warm mouth and Ray's eyes widened at the sudden coldness upon his lips. His eyes then lowered closed at the soft pressure of the kiss. Their lips broke apart only after a moment, and with rosy cheeks Ray blinked his eyes open.

"Incredible," he whispered.

He looked dazed as he placed a hand against his forehead. She giggled at the dopey grin on his face.

"Can I kiss you again?" she asked sweetly.

Pulling down his hand from his face, he quickly nodded yes. And with that she moved up to his face, planting her lips to his once again. Renee giggled as she broke away from his lips, giving him once again another dopey grin.

"Well, um, now I can say I've been kissed by a ghost."

She giggled as she gave him another quick smooch.

"All those times I'd come to this graveyard just hopping to see a ghost and now here I am getting kissed by one."

She giggled again and kissed him again. He moaned happily against her cold ghostly lips.

Rain began to sprinkle down from the sky, but Ray did not seem to notice. Renee pulled her lips from his and looked at his closed eyes as he mumbled, "Oh Renee, you don't know how frustrating this is. I really wish I could hold you back."

She leaned in, giving him another smooch, but quickly pulled away noticing his eyes widen.

"What?" she asked.

"Your pink aura. I can see it. It's pretty." Ray released a heavy sigh. "But I really wish I could see you, though, and not just pink mist."

She sadly blinked at him. "Do you think we can do this?"

"It seems like we're able to kiss just fine. It's a little cold, but..."

"No, I mean us. I'm a ghost. I'm dead. You're living. How will this work?"

"I don't know, but I'm willing to try."

Their lips meshed together once more as the rain began to pour down harder, making everything wet.

"Ray?"

"Hmm?" he said against her kissing lips.

"We should go. It's getting late and you're getting all wet," she giggled.

"Umm.." is the only sound he made before she pulled her lips away. She smiled as she looked at his disappointed face.

"Ray, I don't want you to catch another cold," she smiled dreamily at him.

He sighed and finally realized he was standing in the middle of a rain storm.

"Alright, let's go home."

Ray held out his hand to her and he felt her cold ghostly fingertips take it.

A ghost and a Ghostbuster gradually walked out of the damp graveyard together. Hand in hand, they made their way back home.

 _This was a hard chapter to write. Writing a love scene between a ghost and a living person was kind of difficult._


	8. Chapter 8

The bedroom was dark and quiet, except for the sounds of the men's snores. Renee had herself curled up alongside a sleeping Ray. He snored softly into his pillow. These were the peaceful moments, when all the men were in this room together, all in their own beds fast asleep. They almost reminded her of the seven dwarves from that Snow White story.

Renee felt relaxed and at ease during these nightly hours. Most of all, she loved to watch Ray sleep. She sighed as she glanced down at his closed eyelids. Her mind began to think of all that had happened to her over the past few weeks. She still could not believe that Ray, a Ghostbuster, this adorably sweet guy, actually cared for her. She thought of their date, the kissing, the cemetery, the bookstore. Renee blinked her eyes as she remembered that interesting book she had found there, the one Ray said he owned.

With curiosity, she moved away from Ray and floated out the room to the big bookshelf that stood in the lab. She quickly browsed the book titles, hoping Ray was right about owning that one particular book. Her eyes glanced over the odd book titles until finally she found the one she was looking for, _'The Spirits Book'_. She could hear the men continue to snore from down the hall, so with concentration, she opened the book and began to read.

She read through chapter after chapter, but once she came to chapter eight, her eyes held still on a certain section titled _'visits between the spirit and living persons during sleep.'_ As she read on, a wide hopeful smile grew upon her face.

The men continued to sleep as she slowly entered the bedroom and floated before Ray, still laying asleep in his bed. His face still slept soundly against his pillow. Renee nervously leaned over him and, with a shaky arm, held out her hand and placed it upon his forehead. Tingles fizzed around her translucent fingertips as she gently sank them into his body. Everything suddenly went black around her.

She awoke laying face down in cold dirt. Coughing, she sat herself up and placed her hand against the side of her dizzy head. Her eyes blinked open as she scanned her surroundings. "Where...where am I?"

A starry night sky peaked through tall pine trees which towered around her, and a screech from an owl could be heard high up in the branches. She was in some sort of forest. With wobbly legs, she rose to her feet and carefully stepped toward a pile of boulders. From over them she could hear the crackle of a campfire. She peaked over the large boulders with caution, and there in the distance she saw a cute little campsite. It had a yellow tent and a home-made looking flag with a logo of some kind, with the words _Camp Wauconda_ proudly displayed upon it.

Renee slowly raised her head up higher over the rocks to gain a better view. She spotted a man sitting in a chair by the roaring fire. He held a long stick and she watched as his other hand stuck a big white marshmallow onto the end of it and held it out into the fire. The firelight illuminated the man's face and her eyes went wide. It was Ray! He sat there alone just roasting a marshmallow without a care in the world.

Her heart began to beat wildly and she placed her hand to her chest. She hadn't experienced a heartbeat for so long. She gulped and kept her sight on Ray as she climbed atop of the rocks, where she just sat and dreamily watched him.

Ray leaned forward in his chair, twirling his marshmallow in the fire and watching it turn a golden brown when he suddenly felt as though he was being watched. Glancing up from his marshmallow, his eyes spotted a young woman in a white dress sitting atop the rocks. It startled him at first, but as he studied her, he felt as though he knew her. She sat with her arms wrapped around her knees, just smiling at him with rosy round cheeks. Her long chocolaty brown hair melted down over her shoulders and chest. She was lovely, whoever this girl was, he thought. Her eyes met his and his eyebrows furrowed in thought over who the young woman could be.

"Renee?" his voice called out to her.

Her head popped up with surprise and her arms unwrapped her knees, letting her legs fall and dangle over the rocks. 'Can he see me?' she wondered to herself as her breathing quickened.

"Ray?" she asked out loud with an unsure tone.

Ray's face suddenly lit up, and his mouth opened wide into a huge smile

"Ren!" he yelled out again, now jumping up and out of his chair to his feet.

"Ray!" she called back with excitement. Her heart began to thump even more.

Pulling up the hem of her white dress, she tiptoed down from the rocks and back onto the cold dirt. She could see him running over toward her with happiness. She released a giggle as she too began to run toward him.

"Ren!" he called out again. "I can't believe this! You're here and I can see you!" He hollered with joy.

Her long hair and white dress flapped in the night air as she ran. Their arms reached outward to each other, fingertips almost touching, when suddenly everything once again went black.

"Ray! Ray!"

Ray blinked his eyes open at the sound of Egon's voice. The loud alarms rang all around the bedroom as Peter and Winston groggily jogged out to put on their ghost-catching gear. Egon stood over Ray's bed shaking his head.

"I can't believe you were sleeping through the alarms. Come on! Let's go!"

Ray blinked his eyes awake before sitting up. He looked lost. His messy hair stuck up and his eyebrows furrowed with confusion. The loud alarms squealed around him, reminding him to get a move on. Peeling the sheets back, he jumped out of his bed to meet up with the guys downstairs.

Renee was now alone as the red light from the alarm continued to flash on the bedroom wall. Her weakened orb self was collapsed on the floor by Ray's bed. She could not move no matter how much she tried. "I guess jumping into dreams takes a lot out of a ghost." She sighed and then smiled. "It worked, though. It really worked."

Ray sat at his desk, a pen in his hand, scribbling alterations on his tool design as he talked on about the events of his day to Renee. She listened to him the best she could, still feeling tired from the early morning.

"Ren, are you OK? You don't sound all there."

"Oh, I'm alright, just tired."

"I didn't know ghosts could get tired."

"Yeah, me neither," she said softly.

"Are you sure you're alright?" his worried voice asked. His sweet concern for her made her smile.

"Yes, Ray, I'm alright." He heard the smile in her voice and decided to let it go. He continued on with his work and continued on to describe the events of his day when suddenly his eyes widened.

"I forgot to tell you! I had the strangest dream last night."

Renee's orb lowered and hid behind the junk spread out upon Ray's desk.

"Oh, um, really?" she answered nervously.

"Yeah! You were in it. Can you believe that?"

"You don't say."

"I dreamt I was at my childhood summer camp and then I saw you."

Renee said nothing, but listened.

Ray's voice softened "Oh Ren, you were so beautiful." Renee's orb fluttered over his words and rose herself up from behind the junk of his desk. "You were watching me from afar. I didn't know who you were at first, but then I did. I tried to run to you, but that's when the alarms went off, waking me up to do that awful phantom case we had to do this morning."

The memories of how she almost touched him made her suddenly sad. She could not wait for nightfall to come. Maybe in his dreams, she could actually touch him as though she were alive. A longing for him began to ache within her.

A beeping sound made Renee look up and made Ray turn around in his chair. There stood Egon, with his PKE meter pointed outward in their direction. The wings on the meter extended as the lights on the device buzzed like crazy. Ray's stomach dropped. He was busted and he knew it.

"According to the meter, there's a full entity in this room," Egon said. Ray just stared up at him not knowing what to say. Egon smirked. "Who were you talking to Ray?"

Ray's mouth hung open as he tried to think up a lie, but he couldn't. He knew Egon's meter was always accurate. Egon had him and he figured it was time to confess about Renee.

"Aren't you going to introduce me to your ghost friend?" Egon said with a smug.

"Ray?" Renee's scared voice asked.

"It's alright. It's time to tell him," Ray said, defeated.

Egon shifted his eyes around the room, not seeing anything there. Ray exhaled loudly and began to explain everything.

"Her name is Renee. We picked her up a few weeks back. The Laundromat ghost."

"The Laundromat ghost?" Egon repeated.

"I rescued her from the trap box."

"How come? Why? What made you wanna free a ghost from a box?" Egon's lips twitched with questions.

"I can hear her," Ray explained.

"Hear her? As in she can talk?"

"Like you and me. I can hear her clearly. I can talk to her and she can talk to me." Ray leaned back in his chair.

Egon's eyes went wide as he took all this information in.

"This is unbelievable," Egon mumbled, putting his hand to his head. "And only you can hear her?"

"As far as I know, yes."

"But why just you?"

"That I'm still trying to figure out. I guess I'm just special," Ray shrugged. Egon looked stunned. "I'm not going crazy or anything, Egon. I looked into it." Ray rose up from his chair to grab Renee's news article off a shelf. Ray explained Renee's death to Egon and how the story was in the newspaper. "Everything Renee has told me about herself is true. I got this at the library."

Egon's eyes flashed through the article and over her black and white photo.

"Ray, this is extraordinary! You have actual communication with a ghost! She's here? Now, in this room?" Egon shifted his eyes around the room once again.

"Ren?" Ray asked out into the air.

"I'm here." he heard her soft voice say.

"Yup, she's here."

"Ren? You gave her a nickname?" Egon chuckled. Ray just shrugged with a smile. Egon smiled back widely. "And you released her from the trap box and she didn't leave? She just stayed with you?"

Ray smiled bashfully. "Ah, yeah. Hard to believe, huh?"

Ray could hear Renee release a small giggle.

"She must like you Ray," Egon said as he began to pace around the room, glancing from the news article in his hand to the open air.

"You have no idea." Ray smiled to himself and she giggled once again.

"Well, this explains how the fridge door opened on its own and the computer typing 'hello'."

"She's harmless, Egon."

Egon nodded and then stepped before Ray with excitement.

"Ray, we gotta tell the other guys about this! I mean, this is huge! The research we can conduct with Renee. Why didn't you tell us about her?"

"Well, first I wanted to make sure I wasn't going crazy, and I also didn't want to scare her off. She trusts me."

"That's great Ray! We have to make her comfortable." Ray could see the scientific ideas flash through Egon's head.

"You can't tell the others." Ray blurted.

Egon's face went long. "Why not? I don't understand. You kept this ghost a secret. Why?"

"Peter wouldn't believe it anyway, and if he did, he might want to keep her back in the box, and I don't want that. It's just not time to tell everyone. I still need time to figure things out."

"Ray, this is extremely important. With this opportunity, we can do some major discoveries in the world of paranormal academics, Ray, we need everyone on board with this. With this ghost of yours, we can unlock so many mysteries. Do you understand that?"

"Yes, I know. But you can't say anything Egon,. Just not yet," Ray pleaded.

Egon stared at Ray with disappointment. Ray stared back and crossed his arms.

"I'm telling Venkman," Egon blurted as he turned for the door. Ray gasped and quickly moved to jump in front of him

"Oh no you're not!"

"Oh yes I am!" Egon said as he tried to move around Ray's body. Egon felt himself being tugged and grabbed a hold of the door frame as Ray pulled at his arm. Egon tripped backward into Ray, where they began to wrestle. Renee watched with amusement. They both looked like two wrestling puppies.

"You tell Peter and I'll...I'll tell him about you and Janine!"

Egon's head popped up and they both instantly let go of one another.

"How do you know about that?"

"I have a ghost, remember?"

"You send your ghost to spy?"

Ray's eyebrows jumped up. "No! No! She went into the kitchen to get me a drink when I was sick and she saw you guys...kissing."

Egon's shoulders lowered as he let out a sigh.

"Fine Ray. You got me. I won't tell anyone about your Ren."

Ray sighed with relief. "And I won't tell anyone about Janine and you."

They both stood before each other as they caught their breath. Egon held out his hand and they both shook on it.

Egon watched Ray stumble back to his chair and plop down with exhaustion.

"This ghost, you must really like her Ray."

"Why? What do you mean?"

"You're protective and you just bear-wrestled me for her."

Egon was right. Without thinking, he had just tackled one of his best friends, and all because he wanted Renee's secrecy and protection to remain intact. Ray just looked up at Egon with puppy dog eyes and nodded yes.

Egon walked back over to Ray's desk and picked up the news article. He glanced at Renee's photo.

"She is cute," Egon said, looking down to Ray with a grin, and they both released a chuckle.

Renee's orb fluttered with anticipation. The bedroom was dark and once again full of snoring men. The moment she had been waiting for all day was finally here. She glanced up at the alarm on the wall, hoping this time it wouldn't go off and ruin everything. Her eyes glanced back to Ray, sprawled out asleep on his bed. She moved before him and lowered her nervous hand down upon his forehead. "Oh Ray," she whispered as she felt the tingles around her fingertips melting down into him. Once again everything around her went black as she entered his dream.


	9. Chapter 9

Renee's eyes blinked open as she found herself lying on the ground. She groggily sat up and scanned her surroundings - no longer in a cute little campsite but in some weird, foggy wasteland. She must have successfully entered Ray's dream.

Ray continued to wander aimlessly, his boots marching through the haze. He had no clue where he was.

"Hello?!" he hollered out loud, hoping to get a response. There was only silence. Lowering his shoulders, he continued to walk on. His eyes glanced all around the strange landscape, wondering where he could be, when suddenly he noticed a blurry figure in the distance. Ray began to jog toward it. As the figure came into focus, he stopped. It was a young lady who sat on the ground, with her white dress fanned out like some kind of princess. She looked just as lost as he was. As he approached closer, his heart began to beat faster. Was it? Could it be? It was! It was Ren!

Renee sat there gazing outward when she heard a voice call out to her. She turned her head and could see a man in a Ghostbuster jumpsuit running toward her. Ray? Slowly she rose up to her feet. She watched the man run even faster toward her as she stood.

It was Ray, and her heart began to speed up. Her hands quickly reached down to pick up the hem of her dress as she ran toward him. She could see the large smile on his face grow even bigger, and she released a giggle of joy. Then suddenly his smiling face slammed against something invisible, causing him to fall to the ground with a thud where he moaned out in pain. Renee gasped in horror and approached Ray with her hands held outward until they fell upon some kind of barrier, an invisible wall, almost like a glass wall. What was this? With her hands pressed against the wall, she looked down at Ray sprawled out on the ground just a couple of inches in front of her. Her hands slid down the barrier as she sank to her knees with sadness and worry.

"Ray?!" She tried to call out to him. Her hands pounded against the invisible wall. Finally she noticed Ray's fingers twitch. He raised his hand to his head and wobbly sat up. His blurry eyes finally noticed her there next to him.

"Ren!" he yelled with joy as he quickly scooted over to her on his knees, where once again his face smacked into the wall. It stunned him and he looked at her with confusion. His thick hand reached out to her but hit the wall. Ray frowned as he leaned his face near hers. She placed her hand on the wall against his hand, wishing she could touch him. Ray stared at her. It was the first time he was able to see her up close. She was alive and breathing. She wasn't an orb or a pink mist - she was a real woman.

He looked into her bright eyes, a sparkling hazel green. He moved his gaze to her pink lips as they formed into a small smile. He smiled back. He watched her lips say his name. His heart thumped in his chest. She was beautiful. The girl that had been haunting his thoughts was sitting right there in front of him and he couldn't touch her.

Frustration began to grow within him. He stood up to his feet, determined to find a way to get through the wall. He began to feel around it, banging it with his fists. Renee followed his lead and began to bang around her side of the wall. She watched Ray search around the ground for something to throw at the wall, but could find nothing in the fog. He then went up to the wall and began to kick it with his black boot. Nothing was working. With heavy breathing, he met Renee's sad eyes, which stood before him. They both leaned their foreheads against the wall in defeat.

Ray blinked his eyes to her and her eyes blinked back. His lips began to move and she watched the words "I love you." slip out. Before she could respond, the wall instantly shattered into a million sparkling pieces, causing Renee's body to fall forward into Ray. They both sank to the ground. She felt Ray's strong arm wrap around her, helping her sit up. Ray's fingers brushed her hair back, revealing her dazed face. Ray's wide eyes gazed upon her. She was warm and breathing and she was in his arms! She looked down to her hands, which gripped his arms. She could actually feel the fabric of his jumpsuit. She could touch him, and she gasped. Her hands began to roam up his arm and down his chest, feeling him. His arms then wrapped around her, pulling her closer into him. She trailed her fingertips up the metal zipper of his jumpsuit. Looking up to his face, she gently placed her fingertips against the skin of his cheek. He was soft and warm. Her eyes widened as she felt his fingers gently brush through her hair while his other hand held the side of her face. Tears began to form in her eyes as she began to softly giggle with happiness.

Without a word, Ray lowered his lips to hers. She felt the warm softness of his lips and the firm press of his mouth against hers. "You're not cold," his kissing mouth mumbled against her giggling mouth. Her eyes closed as their kiss deepened. Her lips moved with his and she felt his hands roam across her back, touching her. She reached her arms up and wrapped them around his neck, pulling him down deeper into her kiss. The corners of her lips curled up into a smile over the happy moans that escaped Ray's mouth as they kissed.

Ray never knew he could be this happy. He finally had Ren, in his arms, kissing her, and he never wanted to let go. Then suddenly he felt her pull her mouth away. Their lips came apart.

"Ray..."

He looked dreamily down at her.

"...I just needed to breathe. I couldn't breathe," she giggled. He smiled and lowered his head down to her neck and nuzzled his face into her hair. She closed her eyes and hugged him tight.

Meanwhile, back in the bedroom, Peter rolled over in his bed trying to find a comfortable position when he noticed Ray. Peter stared in confusion at his sleeping friend who was passionately hugging his pillow. Peter shook his head and blinked his eyes, hoping maybe he was just seeing things. But he wasn't. Ray began to kiss his pillow and Peter laid flat on his back and sighed. "I'm finding him a date, no ifs or butts about it. That man needs a girlfriend," Peter mumbled before drifting back to sleep.

Back in Ray's dream, Renee giggled against his ear as she felt him kiss every inch of her neck. Her fingers ran through his hair as he spoke to her in between his kisses.

"Oh Ren." His lips pressed down onto her neck and then up again to speak. "I'm just dreaming this, right? Or is this really happening? Are you really here...with me?"

She looked up at him, her fingers touching his face, his eyebrows, his nose, anything she could. She smiled at him. "This is real, but it's all happening in your dream."

He furrowed his brows. "What do you mean?"

"I read that book of yours. It showed me that I could jump into your dreams. I guess spirits can do those kinds of things."

His eyebrows relaxed once again as he smiled at her. "Oh Ren," he said as he lowered his face back down to kiss her neck. "I don't ever want to wake up."

She smiled and hugged Ray tighter. She lovingly brushed her fingers across the Ghostbuster patch that stuck to the arm of his jumpsuit. She sighed and closed her eyes as she held onto him. Then suddenly she felt herself lose grip of him and she quickly pulled away to look him over. He was beginning to fade away.

"Ren! What's happening?!" he said as his translucent fingers tried desperately to grab a hold of her. She only lowered her eyelids sadly.

"You're waking up."

Everything around them once again went black.

Ray awoke finding himself alone in the bedroom. Sunlight peaked through the curtains of the windows, beaming upon the empty beds in the room. He sat up and looked around.

"Ren?" he whispered out for her. There was no response. "Ren? Where are you?" Then finally he heard a faint voice answer back.

"I'm here Ray." Her voice was weak and low and came from the floor by his bed. He peaked his head off the side of his bed.

"Ren? Are you alright?"

"Yes. I'll eventually be okay. It just takes a lot out of me."

Ray's eyebrows raised up. "So you were in my dream?"

"Yes."

"Ren..." He reached his hand down to the floor and felt the coldness of where her tired orb lay. He then rolled onto his back with a hand to his head. "It kind of gave me a headache, too."

He could hear her softly giggle.

"Ren, I was kissing you. Actually kissing you! You were alive and real! This is all so amazing! I've read about visitation dreams, but I never truly understood how they worked. It was intense. Vivid. Oh Ren, I can be with you in my dreams!"

Renee just smiled as she rested on the floor listening to Ray's wonderful enthusiasm. Ray rubbed his achy forehead.

"But why does it take so much out of us? I have so much to look into."

Ray's boot stomped on the pedal of the trap box, releasing a flash of light. The ghoulish ghost hollered as it was dragged downward to be sealed away. The red light on the box blinked, signaling that the ghost was officially locked up inside.

Ray peeled off his ecto-goggles and stared down at the box. He could hear the others cheer behind him.

"Alight! Finally that's over," Peter joyfully yelled out.

"Yeah, he was a nasty one," Winston said, wiping sweat from his eyes.

Egon stepped up to Ray's side and placed his hand on Ray's shoulder. "You okay?"

Ray blinked and turned to Egon. "I don't know," is all Ray said before following Peter and Winston to the ecto-car.

Egon jogged up to Ray. "What do you mean?" Egon asked with concern

Ray stopped walking and looked at Egon. "It's just weird now...catching these ghosts."

"Because you have Ren?"

Ray nodded yes. "I just wonder if these ghosts could be like Ren, and we just don't know it. Maybe they have thoughts and feelings that they just can't express like she can."

"Can you talk to these ghosts as well?"

"No, only Ren," Ray said as he flashed a quick smile, which Egon noticed. Egon stared at his friend, who sighed and looked downward.

"Ray, what is your relationship with Ren, anyway? Do you have a crush on your ghost?" Egon smiled and chuckled. He watched Ray lift his face up and give him a serious look. It made Egon stop chuckling. Egon stared back at his friend, waiting for him to reply, and then finally Ray answered.

"I'm in love with her."

Speechless, Egon stared as he raised his eyebrows high up on his face. Ray turned, continuing to walk toward the car.

"Wait! Ray!" Egon trotted along by his side with a stunned expression. "Are you sure?" Egon lowered his voice so the others could not hear their conversation.

Ray then grinned. "I'm sure."

Egon's mouth dropped. "In love with a ghost? How is that possible? Can that happen?

"It happened with me and Ren," Ray said as he began to place his gear back into the car.

"Fascinating. A ghost and a Ghostbuster. Does she love you back?"

Ray paused, then slowly turned from the car back to Egon. He blinked his eyes in thought and realized he told Renee he loved her, but she hadn't said the words to him. He stood there not knowing how to answer.

Ray suddenly felt a pat on his back and looked up to find Winston standing between himself and Egon.

"Ray?"

Ray gulped. "Yeah?"

"Are you driving?"

"Yeah. Why wouldn't I?"

"Because you've been acting spacey all day."

"I have?"

"Yeah man. I can drive if you're not feeling hot."

"No. I'm okay. I'll drive."

"You're sure?"

"Yeah, yeah."

"Alright then, that's cool," Winston said before he walked away and into the car.

Ray looked back at Egon. "Have I been acting spacey today?" The worry lines deepened on Ray's forehead.

"Well, you are in love. That's what happens. It takes over your brain like an amoeba virus." Egon smirked as he placed his ghost-catching gear into the car.

The men finally arrived back home to the firehouse where Janine handed over the work orders for tomorrow. Peter and Winston tiredly walked onward up the stairs to rest and grab some food in the kitchen. Egon and Ray entered the front room slowly behind. With no Peter in sight, Janine rushed herself over to Egon and jumped into his arms. They embraced as Janine covered Egon's face with kisses. Since Ray's discovery of their relationship, they had become comfortable about displaying their affection for one another in front of him. Ray watched them hold onto each other for a moment before turning his gaze to the open room. He frowned, wishing Renee could be here in person to hug him at the end of a hard day. Being in love with a ghost hadn't been easy. He sighed and told Egon he was going to put the trap box away. He strode down to the basement with the trap dangling from his hand when he suddenly felt it - Renee swirling happily around his body.

With a clipboard in his hand, Egon tried to focus on reading the energy meters that hung along the wall of the basement. But instead his eyes watched Ray as he sat at the desk flirting with his ghost. Ray puffed away on his cigarette, slowly blowing out the smoke from his lips seductively. Egon watched as the smoke twirled up into the air as though something was swirling through it. Ray puffed and blew once again, and this time the smoke swirled up into the shape of a heart before disappearing into the air.

"Incredible," Egon mumbled to himself.

Suddenly the loud sounds of footsteps clamored down the basement stairs. "Ray?" Peter's voice called out.

Ray coughed out cigarette smoke as Peter emerged into the basement with a smug look upon his face. Ray looked up at him, waiting for what Peter had to say.

"So Ray..." Ray gulped, sensing Peter was up to something. "Got any plans this Saturday night?"

Ray's eyes blinked and shifted around as he thought. "Um, no I guess. Why?"

"You do now, pal. This Saturday night you will be double-dating with me and Sharon, that beautiful blond missus of mine."

Ray's eyebrows perked up with confusion. "Double date? With who?"

Peter's smug face walked up to Ray and the desk.

"I got you a date with one of Sharon's friends."

Egon continued to pretend to work, his eyes shifting from his clipboard to Ray and Peter. He watched the look of panic wash over Ray's face.

"Peter, thanks for thinking about me and all, but I don't..."

"No!" Peter held out his hand to stop Ray from continuing. "Ray, you are going on this date. You will be spending time with a woman. You are getting out of this place and hopefully, if you play your cards right, end up at her place."

Ray sighed and lowered his shoulders. He shook his head, knowing there was no way to get out of this. When Peter was determined, he never backed down.

"So this Saturday night, buddy. Dress up 'cause you and me will be taking those two lovely ladies out on the town."

With no good excuses to get out of the situation, Ray sighed in defeat. "Fine, Peter," Ray mumbled as he lowered his head into his hand.

"Good!" Peter slapped Ray's back before turning to the stairs. He noticed Egon's eyes nervously shift away from him and back to his clipboard. Peter just stared at Egon with his smug smile as he jogged up the stairs and out of the basement.

 _The dream scene in this chapter was inspired by a music video by the Foo Fighters called "Walking After You". I'm thrilled that my story is making people happy. I love the reviews, thanks everyone!_


	10. Chapter 10

Ray pulled at the collar of his button shirt. He could feel it strangle around his neck. Peter took a sip from his wine glass, and from across the elegant table spread watched his friend nervously loosen his tie. "So," Ray heard Peter begin, "what do you think of her?"

Ray's mouth hung open. "Well, um, she's...she's...Linda seems very nice, and so is your Sharon. You sure can find some lovely girls, Venkman," Ray said as he reached for his wine glass. Peter didn't buy Ray's fake compliments. From the moment the date started, Ray acted as though he did not want to be there. He acted distant, uninterested, and seemed anxious to get away. Peter sat his glass down and sighed with annoyance.

"Ray, can you at least try? I did this for you!" Ray blinked at Peter's serious expression. "I've been worried about you and I just thought you could use some fun for a change and engage with the living for once, take a break from dealing with spooks and ghosts for awhile. So can you at least try to have a good time here?"

Ray bowed his head in shame. The two men then heard the light sounds of female giggles as their dates entered back into the restaurant from the restroom. Ray held his head up, deciding to try and behave more gentleman-like toward everyone. Ray watched Peter get up from his chair and pull out Sharon's chair for her to sit down upon. Quickly Ray stood and reenacted the same motion for Linda. The two ladies grinned with delight over the polite gesture.

Feeling too anxious to stay at the firehouse and uncomfortable with Ray being out with another girl, Renee quietly followed Ray along on his date without him knowing. Her translucent figure moved near their table, where she watched the group date have dinner. Ray watched Peter move in close to Sharon, whispering things into her ear. He watched Sharon giggle and press herself closer into him. Ray envied the flirtation and wished Ren was with him, having dinner with him, both dressed in fancy clothes, out on the town together. He frowned and glanced down to his fork on the table.

"Why do you look so sad?" Ray heard his date ask him. Ray looked up to Linda's face as she asked, "Did I do something to upset you?"

Ray's eyebrows perked up. "No. No. You're fine. I just, um, have a lot on my mind."

Linda seductively leaned in closer to him. She enjoyed how her action made Ray squirm nervously in his seat. It made her feel powerful, as if she were a lion going in for a kill. "So, what is on your mind?" she said with a flirtatious grin. A sweet little ghost named Ren - that's what was on his mind he answered to himself. Linda suddenly leaned toward him. Ray could feel himself begin to sweat. Linda was an attractive woman who seemed physically interested in him, but the more closer she got, the more uncomfortable he felt.

"What's on my mind?" Ray gulped and Linda nodded yes. Ray quickly thought of an answer. "My work. I have so much to think about."

Linda flipped her curly blond hair, her red lips smiling up at him. "I'm just fascinated with what you and Peter do and I can't believe I'm on a date with a real Ghostbuster." She placed her fingertips on the knot of his tie and slowly trailed them downward.

"Um," is all he could mutter. Just then, the lights throughout the restaurant flickered erratically. All the diners looked up and around from their tables, curious to what was happing. The flickering finally came to a stop and all went back to normal. The dining crowd laughed over the spectacle.

"What was that?" Linda asked, now sitting up and off of Ray. Sharon giggled as Peter's arms playfully wrapped around her as he joked out loud, "It must be a ghost! This restaurant's haunted!" Peter's comment made Sharon go into a laughing fit. Linda scooted over to Ray and placed her hands on his shoulders. The touch of the living woman's hands made him flinch. "Well, if this place is haunted, I'm glad to be here with a handsome Ghostbuster," Linda's flirtatious voice whispered into Ray's ear. Just then, the glass of wine that stood on the table tipped itself over, spilling into Linda's lap. She gasped in disgust and stood up from her chair. She stared down at the red stain on her fashionable dress.

"My dress! My dress! Oh, it's ruined!" she squealed angrily.

Ray grabbed a napkin. "Here, let me try to help."

"No! No!" She pushed his hand aside. Sharon got up from her chair to help her friend. The two ladies soon were off to the restroom once again. Peter looked to Ray as he took another sip from his glass and muttered, "Nice, Ray."

Ray's eyebrows perked up defensively. "I didn't do that! It was an accident!"

Peter just stared at him and replied, "Then maybe it was that light-flickering ghost who did it."

Ray stared back as Peter's comment repeated in his mind. Ray blinked his eyes as realization kicked in. Peter watched as Ray rose up from his chair and threw down his napkin onto the table.

"Excuse me, Venkman, I need to get some air," Ray said sternly. And with that he left the dining room to a balcony where a few smokers stood in the cold night air puffing away on their after-dinner cigarettes. Ray leaned against the railing and sighed irritably as he looked out over blinking New York city.

Ren's ghostly figure moved behind him. Ray suddenly heard her small voice say, "I'm sorry." Without looking away from the twinkling city lights, he frowned. The smokers nearby finally finished and returned to the warm dining room inside, leaving Ray and Ren alone. Ray straightened up off the railing and turned around to the sound of where her voice spoke.

"Ren! I can't believe...why did you...I don't even know what to say!" She watched his chest rise and fall angrily.

"She was all over you, so of course I did some ghost tricks on her. What was I going to do, let another woman paw at you?

"You embarrassed me and now they all think I'm some kind of oaf. Peter's annoyed, Linda's dress is ruined and they all think it's my fault!"

Ray exhaled and she watched his breath puff out of his mouth into the cold air, reminding her how alive he was and how not alive she was.

"Ray, this isn't easy for me. Watching you go on a date..."

His voice then suddenly interrupted hers. "Yeah, I know! It's not easy!" She watched as his expression turned into sadness and his voice lowered. "Ren, I'm having a hard time with this," he said as he shook his frustrated head. She moved closer to him as he began to spill out his emotions. "I just really wish you could be with me, you know. I need you and I think about you all the time, but I can only have you in my dreams, and sometimes it's not for very long. During the day I can't see you or touch you." Ren bowed her head as she listened. "It's like I can only have pieces of you at certain times." He sighed and shoved his hands into his pockets. "It's frustrating for me, Ren. I thought I could do this, but now..."

"I understand," her soft voice spoke.

"Ren, I'm trying to be honest with you."

"You don't have to explain. I get it." She looked down to her hands, which she held out in front of her, and she stared sadly at her translucent fingertips. Her gaze then moved to the large windows of the restaurant where she watched couples at dining tables laugh and dreamily look into one another's eyes. Her eyes then shifted to the table where Peter sat with Sharon as they continued to cozy up with one another. Linda sat across from them with her face in her hand, awaiting for Ray's return.

Renee suddenly felt intrusive. Ray was a living man and had a life to live, a future to experience. He was flesh and blood and needed a woman that could be there for him in all. She was just a ghost, a dead person, a dead dumb ghost who was here in limbo and didn't even know why! Ghostly tears filled her eyes as she realized it was maybe time to let go of any hope of a relationship with Ray. He deserved better - better then what she could give him.

"I'm sorry, Ray." she spoke in a soft, low voice, "I'm sorry for interrupting your life. I shouldn't have stayed around you. Maybe it's time I should go."

"No! No, Ren! I didn't mean to make you think you should go. I'm not asking you to leave," he tried to correct her.

"I think it would be best if I did."

Her eyes glanced back to the table where Linda sat impatiently. "You should get back to your date, Ray. She seemed to like you. I just hope she will take care of you, bring you a drink the next time you're sick."

"Ren, please, don't say these things. Please don't leave. I'm just frustrated, but I still need you. My life would be empty without you!"

She looked into his desperate eyes, but her mind was made up. She had to go.

"Maybe this is why ghosts don't communicate with the living. It just causes problems."

"You're not a problem, Ren. Stay with me!"

Ren stared at Ray one last time. She moved before him and placed her cold lips upon his cheek, giving him a goodbye kiss. He closed his eyes over the cool sensation.

"Goodbye Ray. Maybe I'll see you on the other side, someday in the far future."

"Ren, please," his voice cracked in desperation.

"Bye Ray," her emotional voice said as her translucent figure shaped itself back into a pink misty orb and sadly disappeared into the night air. And with that, she was gone.

Peter perked himself up in his chair as he saw Ray approach the table. He noticed his sad demeanor and slow stride.

"Something wrong, Ray?" Peter asked out loud, making the two women look up. They too became curious to know why Ray looked so horribly depressed.

"I, uh, I have to go. I'm sorry everyone, but I'm just not...I just can't do this right now. It was very nice to meet you, Linda. Thanks for the night out, Peter. I'll, um, see you later."

Everyone at the table watched a broken Ray leave the restaurant. Peter shrugged at the two puzzled women.


	11. Chapter 11

The cold autumn breeze whipped around Ray as he sat on the edge of the dried up fountain. He looked out over the tombstones which hid in the swaying tall grass. The place was eerily quite as usual, and after sitting there for some time he sadly hung his head low. He had hoped that maybe she was here in the old cemetery, but there was no trace of a sweet ghost. He sighed as he thought of where else Renee could be. There had been no sign of her since that evening on the balcony where she had left him. Ray furrowed his brow over the memory, his heart still hurting from that night. He also remembered how upset Peter was, questioning why he had left the date so early. Peter urged for answers and Egon had to practically drag Peter away. That's when Egon accidently spilled the beans that Ray had just been dumped by his girl. Ever since then, Peter had been sympathetic but still questioned why Ray had never talked about this mysterious girlfriend of his.

Days and nights had gone by without the sound of her voice and Ray struggled to carry on with daily life. He couldn't eat, barely spoke and had stopped work on the aura device he and Renee had been working on. The only thing Ray looked forward to was sleep. He anticipated nightfall and was the first to go to bed in hopes of finding Renee there waiting for him in his dreams.

Still, there was no trace of her. Night after night she would never be there. When the realization that perhaps she did leave for good entered his mind, it would cause him great pain. Tired of hurting, he decided to go out and look for her as much as a man could search for a ghost. He checked all the places she could possibly be and didn't care if people stared oddly at him for calling out her name. He searched the Laundromat, the bookstore, and now here at the graveyard, but she was nowhere.

Street lamps blinked on as the sun set. Ray decided to head home and slowly walked along the sidewalk, not caring if crowds of bustling people bumped into him. He turned the corner and glanced up at the ratty-looking building to his left. In one of the windows a florescent light flickered with the words "Psychic Palm Readings". He stared at it for a moment as he contemplated going in or not, knowing full well these establishments were usually run by con artists. He decided to go inside anyway, desperate for all the help he could get, hoping this person could give him some kind of information he could work with to help find Ren.

The old door creaked open as he poked his head inside. The room was dark, lit only by candles and strung funky lights. The walls were covered in random newspaper clippings, voodoo dolls, star maps, and weird artwork. Dusty shelves held glass jars of odd objects and thick red colored rugs covered the floors. Ray shut the door behind him as an old but wise looking black woman in a long dress with a white turban on her head emerged from the beaded curtains.

"I have been expecting you. Come." The woman held out her hand, offering a seat at the wooden table. Ray said nothing and took a seat. The woman sat across the table from him. He could feel her eyes pierce into him as though she was reading his thoughts.

"So, you've been expecting me, huh?" Ray said skeptically.

"I knew I would have a weary soul come visit me tis day," the old woman's voice croaked.

Ray stared back at her, beginning to feel that coming in here was a stupid idea. He began to rise up from his chair. "I'm sorry. Maybe I shouldn't have..."

"Stop!" The woman held out her hand, which made Ray fall back into his seat. Her beady eyes studied him as she lowered her hand. "You are searching for sumting, yes?"

Ray only nodded. The old woman squinted her eyes at him once more.

"You...I have seen you before...on da TV. Ghostbuster."

"Yes, ma'am. My name is..."

"Not important!" her voice interrupted. She ignited a flame from a match head with just her finger tips, then lit a large candle that sat in the middle of the table. Ray watched the flame flicker and dance. The woman's beady eyes studied him once again. Ray sat still not knowing what he was supposed to do. Then suddenly the woman said something that made Ray sit up straight in shock.

"Renee." The name slipped out from the woman's wrinkled lips. Ray's heart began to beat faster.

"Yes!" he cried happily. The woman held out her hand again as if to settle him down. Ray quickly shut his mouth, though he breathed in and out excitably through his nose. The woman reached her hand out for Ray to take.

"Take ma hand."

Ray held her wrinkled hand and watched her roll her eyes into the back of her head. Ray wondered what she was doing and gulped nervously over the strange scene. Then her eyes shot wide open and looked down at their folded hands. Slowly she lifted her head up to his stare, and with a soft smile she finally let go of his hand. Ray pulled his hand away and hid it in his lap, awaiting to hear what the woman had to say. She continued to smile and nod her head at him as though she had just figured something out.

"Ya know Ghostbuster, I feel spirits all of da time. Lots complain about you," she chuckled to herself.

Ray's wide eyes blinked. "Really?"

"I could feel your complaints with them as well," she chuckled once again. Then her face grew soft. "But I also felt something else when I held your hand. Amongst all da dislike you have for da spirits, I could feel a strong bond for one in particular."

Ray's heart beat faster and faster in his chest. This was all so amazing! This voodoo woman definitely tapped into him. There's no way she could have known about Ren. She had to be a legit spiritualist.

"I felt a surge of love."

"Yes!" Ray happily replied.

She smiled, showing her crooked teeth. "Your soul keeps repeating the name Renee to me."

"Yes!"

"You love this spirit, then?" The old woman crooked up an eyebrow at him.

"Yes!"

Her face grew suddenly serious. "But da Renee spirit you seek has passed, I sense."

Ray's face went white. "What?! What do you mean?!"

The woman then pulled out a velvet pouch and dumped the contents onto the table. Ray watched small odd objects such as baby's teeth, a key, a stone, a chicken bone, and other various things spill across the table. The woman then closed her eyes and hovered her hands over the mess as if she were figuring out a message. Ray sat quietly with a pained expression. Renee couldn't have left him. Did she figure a way into the light? Finally the woman spoke.

"The Renee spirit is somewhere in between."

"What do you mean, 'in between?'" Ray's sad eyes stared at the woman.

"Half of her is till here and half is in da beyond." The woman looked up and smirked at Ray. "To be more clear, she is too chicken to go all da way into the light." The woman then chuckled.

Ray's eyebrows lifted in joy. "So she's still here? She hasn't left?!"

"Part of her is still here, yes." The woman flashed her crooked teeth once again.

"Can you talk to her? Tell her to come back to me, can you?" Ray desperately asked.

"Do you have anyting belonging to her wit you? Anyting at all?"

Ray thought and then pulled out the folded-up newspaper clipping of her photo and handed it to the woman.

"Will this work?"

"Yes, dat fine." The woman laid it out on the table and covered Renee's photo with the palm of her hand, her eyes once again rolled into the back of her head. Ray watched as his heart pounded in his chest. After a moment, the woman came to and shook her head. Ray's shoulders lowered.

"I can't connect wit her fully. I did perhaps send her a feeling."

"A feeling?"

"That she is being searched for."

Ray glanced down into his lap. "Only I could really talk to her." The woman listened as she causally picked up the odd objects from the table, placing them back into the pouch. "Only I could hear Renee's voice, though I still don't know why." Ray exhaled loudly.

The woman chuckled to herself, making Ray look up to her.

"Of course you can talk to her," the woman said with sureness. "You are soul mates." The woman grinned as she stood from the table and turned around to walk toward a shelf. Ray sat blinking his eyes over this realization. The woman turned back around, finding Ray still stunned in silence. She smiled and approached him. "You see, soul mates naturally have strong bonds. It does not surprise me you can talk to your Renee. To be honest wit you though, it tis rare for da living soul and passed soul to still have such a strong communication like da two of you have." Ray blinked his eyes up at her.

"I need to find her. How can I get her back?"

"It tis not up to you. Only she can come back. It tis up to her."

Ray bowed his head as his fingers ran through his hair. The woman stood over him with a smile.

"It tis sweet, to witness tis."

Ray looked back up at her with sad puppy dog eyes. "Witness what?"

"Love, especially a man in love." The old woman placed her hand gently onto Ray's shoulder. "Tis such a cruel world, it tis nice to see that love still exists in it and perhaps even in da afterlife."

In some dreamlike realm surrounded by stars, Renee sat with her knees hugged tightly against her chest as she looked outward. She was high up in the sky on a cloud. She drifted there, eyeing the other lost souls sitting upon their own clouds who bobbed by her through the night sky. Her eyes glanced to the bright light in the far distance. The sight of it made her nervous. Blinking her eyes, she looked downward and away from it. Her eyes then stared down to the Earth below. The city lights twinkled like diamonds. The sight made her smile, knowing somewhere down there was the man she loved. The more she stared at Earth below, the more she could feel a strong pull, as though something was telling her to go back. "Ray," she whispered before hiding her face into her knees. She missed him terribly and wanted nothing but to just go back to him, but she knew it wouldn't be right. She had to move on and let him live his life. But the idea of going into that strange light, not knowing what was on the other side, not knowing if she would ever see Ray again frightened her. Feeling confused and scared, she began to softly weep.


	12. Chapter 12

There was some hope building inside Ray after his visit with the voodoo woman. He opened his locker to retrieve his jumpsuit, and as he looked down at the Ghostbusters patch attached to the sleeve, he wondered where Renee could be. "Come back to me, Ren," he sighed to himself.

"Load 'em up! Let's move it!" Peter yelled out to his fellow Ghostbusters from inside the car. The men scrambled, gearing up for the call. As Ray zoomed through the New York traffic, Egon filled the boys in on what kind of spirit they were to catch on this assignment.

"I have not heard of anything like this before," Egon explained. "Apparently this spirit has been terrorizing the lower Manhattan region of the city and has been getting stronger by the day."

"What do you mean 'stronger'?" Winston asked anxiously.

"From what my sources say, it has gained some interesting powers. I'm not sure exactly on the details."

As they drove up to their destination, they could see a crowd of people gathered around the entry of a junkyard.

"This is it? A junkyard? Why can't a ghost ever haunt a warm beach or a golf resort," Peter moaned as they all exited the car. The crowds cheered at their arrival as they suited up for battle, strapping proton packs onto their backs. An old man in a dirty baseball cap suddenly rushed over to them.

"It's in there somewhere," the man frantically warned them. "Johnny is in the hospital because of that demon! Be careful, I tell ya. I swear it's the devil himself lurking there in my junkyard!"

A police officer pulled the man away and looked the Ghostbusters straight into their eyes. He began to explain more on the situation.

"Thanks for coming out here, guys," the cop began. "Seems we have a mysterious antagonizer here. We're not sure what it is, so we decided to call you guys."

"What sort of antagonizing does this spirit do?" Egon asked first. The cop took a breath before answering.

"Well, that's the thing. We aren't really sure what this thing is."

"You don't think it's a ghost?" Winston asked.

The cop shrugged. "Not sure. It's something supernatural, we know that. Some witnesses have claimed it's a shadowy figure. Some have said it resembled a man."

The Ghostbusters all glanced at one another before Egon said what they were all thinking. "Maybe it could be a demon."

"Well, whatever it is, it's not a normal human," the cop added.

"What did it do to this Johnny guy?" Peter asked.

The cop exhaled. "When we found Johnny, he was zapped of all his energy. The guy was pale and hanging on for dear life."

"So this thing may be feeding off of energy?" Egon questioned out loud.

The cop nodded. "Maybe. For the past week, we've had many calls about this, finding victims in the same way we found Johnny - completely drained."

The Ghostbusters thanked the cop for his information and cautiously approached the front gates of the compound.

They once again glanced nervously at one another, gulping before they entered inside.

The cheers of the crowd faded away as they slowly strode deeper into the middle of the junkyard. With their proton guns out, they searched for any signs of the demon spirit. The place was eerily quiet, except for the sounds of their boots squashing through the muddy ground. Piles and piles of junk surrounded them as they followed the little trails that zig-zagged around the towering junk. They felt as though they were in some sort of maze, but so far, they could not find anything supernatural.

"Maybe we should split up?" Egon suggested.

"Oh no, no. Last time we did that, I got attacked by a green slime ball," Peter reminded everyone.

"Fine. Since we don't know how dangerous this thing could be, we should stick together," Egon said, and the men agreed with that plan. Then suddenly they heard the sound of metal fall to the ground. The men jumped and twirled around with their guns aimed. They watched as a hubcap rolled out from the shadows toward them and plopped flat onto the ground. The men stared in the direction from where it came but saw no one. Feeling frustrated, they lowered their guns and sighed.

"Unless that hubcap is the demon, I don't see anything here," Peter said.

The men stood around with their hands on their hips as they thought of what to do.

"Maybe we should set up some kind of trap," Ray suggested. Peter rolled his eyes over that idea, stepped away from the group and began to shout out loud. "Oh ghost! Come out, come out wherever you are!" Ray rolled his eyes over Peter's childishness and Egon and Winston chuckled. Peter turned back around to their attention and held up his hands. "See! There's no ghost. Nothing's here." But before Peter could continue, a spooky rumble of a voice spoke out, causing the men to freeze still and the hairs on the back of their necks rise up.

"You're right," a deep voice said. "There is no ghost. Only me."

The men watched as a tall figure emerged from the shadows. It was a man, but his eyes glowed like two flashlights and his hair stood upward. The Ghostbusters stood side by side as the man stepped out into view with an evil grin. They instantly knew this man was not an earthly being. The guys all looked to Ray for his communication skills, their expressions pushing him to say something. Ray scrunched up his brows in fear but nodded okay. He licked his lips and began to speak.

"If, if you're not a ghost, then what are you? Who are you?"

The being's evil grin widened and he held his arms outward and shouted, "God!" Then beams of white energy blasted from his hands. The Ghostbusters jumped out of the way, falling to the ground just as the blasts hit a broken three-legged table behind them. The guys watched as the table suddenly came to life, jumping around like a horse. The Ghostbusters scrambled to their feet and pulled out their proton guns as the table began to charge toward them. The beams of their guns blasted it, instantly causing it to fall over. The men halted their shooting and observed it. The jumping table was once again a lifeless, ordinary table.

"Incredible!" Egon shouted.

The evil being then jumped up into the air like a ninja, making the Ghostbusters aim up their guns where they began to try and blast him. The being grumbled a deep laugh as he dodged the streams of their blasts. He landed on top of a stack of old car tires and proudly stood up straight. Winston squinted his eye as he took aim at him. It was a successful shot, as his stream hit the being dead on. The being shrieked out in shock as the other Ghostbusters took a shot at him. But instead of falling dead, the being stood even straighter with a smirk. His hands rose up into the sky as though he enjoyed getting shot at. The men suddenly realized the being was somehow sucking up the energy from their blasts. Peter yelled out to stop shooting and they stood in disbelief as the being began to laugh, looking meaner and bigger than moments before.

The being held out his hands in their direction and shot out what seemed like a more powerful energy blast, but instead of hitting the Ghostbusters, it hit the piles of junk behind them. They watched in horror as dozens of junky objects began to spring to life and attack them. It was like a scene from some sort of nightmare. The men hollered in fright and rose up to their feet to get away. As they ran, Egon's scientific brain was analyzing the situation.

"He has the ability to animate lifeless objects!" Egon yelled over the loud sounds of crashing trash piles that fell behind them. "He can manipulate energies! In a sense, he is a god!" Egon panted as he ran.

"What do we do now?! We can't use our proton packs!" Peter yelled back. The objects were gaining on them and the men were forced to spilt up. Ray ran away as fast as he could and found himself alone at a dead end. A roaring chainsaw that had been following him had him cornered. Ray's back pressed against the brick wall, and he pulled up his proton gun and fired. The chainsaw instantly fell to the ground, motionless. Ray blinked his eyes as he tried to catch his breath. In the distance, he could hear his fellow Ghostbusters' proton guns fire off. His feet quickly began to run toward the sounds to help when suddenly the being appeared before him. Ray stopped in his tracks as the being stood staring at him with his glowing eyes. Ray's body shook with fear not knowing what to do. Knowing there was nowhere to escape and knowing his weapon was worthless, Ray stepped backward from the being, and once again his back hit against the wall.

"Ray! Ray!" He could hear Peter and the guys call out for him. Ray watched the being hold out his hand toward them as if warning them to not come closer. The other Ghostbusters stopped instantly in fear. The being's eyes then shifted back to Ray, who was cornered like a rat. An evil smirk appeared on the being's lips as a bright light of energy began to build up in his hand and shoot out toward Ray. The men yelled in horror as the beam zoomed toward Ray. Ray watched as the bright light narrowed in on him. He held his breath knowing he was probably done for when suddenly another bright light appeared and intercepted the being's energy blast. The pink orb was struck violently, but the energy beam bounced off the orb, sending it back at the being. The being shouted in pain as his own blast struck him. Ray watched the pink orb crash land into a pile of old mattresses. The being shrieked as his body bloated, then exploded into a large blast of energy, causing everyone to fall to the ground and shield their faces.

The Ghostbusters coughed as they rose up from the ground in the haze of smoky, dirty air. Ray's eyes looked to where the orb had crashed and quickly rose to his feet to investigate. His heart thumped as he desperately pulled broken parts and pieces of mattress out of his way, hoping to find what had saved him. The image of that pink orb repeated in his mind. It just had to be her! He hoped to find something as he dug deeper. His heart quickened as he pulled away a piece of wood and found a dainty female hand laying underneath. His breathing quickened as he excitably removed more rubble, revealing an arm and then a shoulder. Then, finally, he saw her face, laying there with eyes closed, her pale cheeks covered with smeared dirt. "Ren? Ren! Ren!" Ray shouted with happiness

He crawled over to examine her. She was alive, but knocked out. He held up her wrist and felt her warm, soft skin. Ray blinked his eyes. "She's alive?" he questioned to himself. He smoothed his hand over her cheek and through her long waves of brown hair, when he finally realized she was naked. He blushed and looked away, quickly peeling off his proton pack and then his jacket, which he laid over her like a blanket.

"Ray! Are you alright?!" Egon shouted from over the pile of mattress rubble.

"It's Ren. She's alive! She saved us!"

The men looked at one another and then carefully climbed up the mattress pile where they spotted Ray sitting in the rubble, holding an unconscious young woman in his arms wrapped in his jacket. Ray's joyous face looked to them and then to Egon. "This is Renee!"

"Who's Renee?" Peter asked with confusion. Egon turned to him with a smirk. "It's Ray's girlfriend."

Peter blinked his eyes in even more confusion.

"She's uh, she's alive...but I don't know how?" Ray said as he stared down at her face.

Egon's brain went into action. "Well, it could be like this; you see, that...that...well, whatever that guy was had the energy to make lifeless things come to life, right?" Ray looked up to Egon as he listened. "Well, Renee wasn't alive, so technically those blasts, like they did to those objects, made her come to life."

Ray's eyes widened at Egon's explanation and then back down to her face. "You mean she's really alive?!" he exclaimed happily, almost with a laugh. Suddenly her eyelashes flickered as she let out a little moan. Ray's heart thumped fast in his chest. "Ren!" He gently tried to help her wake up. He watched her long eyelashes twitch and slowly blink open.

"Ray?" her weak voice spoke. Ray chuckled and hugged her tight against him. The other men watched speechless over the display.

Egon looked to Winston and Peter by his side."Hey, um, how about we give them some privacy?"

"Can someone please tell me what is going on here?" Peter asked, and Egon patted his shoulder.

"Sure, I'll explain everything. You remember that laundromat assignment we did many weeks back?" Egon began to explain the story of Ren and Ray as the three of them walked toward the junkyard exit. The crowds cheered over the sight of them.

Ray pulled back his hug and looked down at her smiling up at him from his cradled arms.

"You came back to me, Ren, and you took a bullet for me. You saved me."

Her eyelids lowered a little as she answered. "Of course I did. I love you."

She said it! She said the words he longed to hear, and with that he lowered his lips to hers in a passionate kiss. When they pulled apart, he noticed her face go sad.

"I'm sorry for leaving you, Ray. I'll never do that again." He didn't answer and only lowered his lips to hers once again. Her arms wrapped around his neck as their warm lips locked together in another long, passionate kiss.

The small pizzeria was crowded, but the ambiance was warm, filled with chatter and laughter. In the corner by the front window, Ray and Renee sat next to each other at a large, round table. Both were dressed well for a night on the town, Ray in a tie and Renee in a dress with her hair curled. Ray held her hand as he sprinkled kisses across her neck. Her rosy cheeks smiled as she leaned into him as well, where she began to kiss him back.

"You never let go of my hand," she whispered into his ear, and she felt him give her hand a squeeze.

"I'm never letting go of you again," he whispered back in between his kisses, making her giggle softly. "Plus, I can't get that image of you out of my head."

"What image?" she asked.

"Of you wearing nothing but my Ghostbuster jacket." He began to kiss her neck harder with a throaty purr and she playfully squealed and laughed in his tightened embrace.

"Ah! Here you a-go, a fresh, jumbo large pepperoni a-pizza!" A cheerful chef in a white uniform slid a giant, steaming pizza onto their round table. Renee's eyes lit up over the size of it and she gasped with excitement. Finally some pizza!

The rest of the guys stumbled into the restaurant from the chilly night air.

"Heyyy!" they all cheered, and Ray and Ren smiled widely as they approached the table.

Ray stood up to greet his fellow Ghostbusters. "You're just in time!"

Peter held up a champagne bottle. "How 'bout some bubbly with that pepperoni?"

Renee stood up as well and rushed over to give each of the men a kiss on the cheek, knowing if it wasn't for them, she would probably still be a lonely ghost hiding away in that laundromat attic. The men each gave her a hug and Ray proudly watched the scene, booming with happiness. They all finally sat down at the table. "Let's dig in already!" Winston cheered and Peter popped the cork from the champagne bottle and poured the fizzy liquid into glasses.

"Champagne and pepperoni. I can already feel my stomach acid reflex beginning," Egon mumbled, which made everyone laugh. Ray watched Renee pick up a cheesy slice and take a big bite. He watched her eyes close with pleasure as she chewed, and he chuckled knowing how much she had missed the taste of pizza. Peter lifted up his glass of champagne and announced a toast.

"Here's to the junkyard demon. If it wasn't for him, we wouldn't have Renee here with us today." They all cheered and Peter continued. "And for Renee, who saved Ray and all of us from the junkyard demon!" They cheered and clinked their glasses together.

After sipping down the champagne, everyone resumed eating. Renee looked over to Ray next to her. Their eyes met and he gave her a smile. She smiled back and leaned her head down onto his shoulder. She could hear Ray's heart beat as she snuggled against him. Renee gazed happily around the table at her new-found friends, feeling lucky to have this second chance at a new life, a life with Ray. From underneath the table, her hand reached for his and she squeezed it tight. She never wanted to let go of him, either.

The end

 _Thank you for reading my story! : )_


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